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PUBLIC LIBRARY 

Kansas City, Mo. 




CON JUGIAL,, LOVE. 



3 



PERTAINING TO 



CONJUGIAL LOVE 



TO WHICH IS ADDED 

pleasures of Insanitg 



PERTAINING TO 



SCORTATORY LOVE 



BY 

EMANUEL SWEDENBORG 

ASwedt 



Bting translation of kit taerk 

** HmxnM SArinm jc m AMOKIT. CoNjacutt ; POST QUAS SEQCUNTOR VOLUFXATBS IMBAKUI 
ex AMOIB SCOSTATOKIO" (Amstekxiaml 1768) 



NEW YORK 

AMERICAN SWEDENBORG PRINTING AND PUBLISHING 
SOCIETY 

HO. 3 WEST TWENTY-NINTH STREET. 



Published by THE AMERICAN SWJEDENBGRG PRINTING AND PUBLISHING 
SOCIETY, organized for the purpose of Stereotyping, Printing, and 
Publishing Uniform Editions of the Theological Writings of EMANUEL 
SWSDEXBORQ, tind incorporated in ike State of New York, A. r>, 1850 



CONJUGIAL LOVE 



AND ITS 



CHASTE DELIGHTS. 



PRELIMINARY RELATIONS RESPECTING THE JOYS OF HEAVEN 

AND NUPTIALS THERE. 

1. ** f AM aware that many who read the following pagoa 
owl the MEMORABLE KKLATIONS annexed to the chapters, will 
believe that they are fictions of the imagination; but! solemnly 
declare they are not fictions, but were truly done and seen; and 
that I saw them, not in any state of the mind asleep, but in a 
state of perfect wakefulness ; for it has pleased the Lord to 
manifest himself to me, and to send me to teach the things 
ntlalinir to the New Church, which is meant by the NEW 
JKKI'SALKM in the Revelation : for winch purpose he has opened 
the interiors of my mind and spirit; by virtue of which privi- 
lege it ho* been granted me to be iu the spiritual world with 
aiigi'K and at the same time in the natural world with men, 
and this now [IT(>8] for twenty-five years." 

2, On a certain time there appeared to me an angel flying 
beneath the eastern heaven, with a trumpet in his hand, wnicS 
he held to his mouth, and sounded towards the north, the west, 
and the south. He was clothed in a robe, which waved behind 
him a^ he Hew along, and was girt about the waist with a band 
that Hhone like fire and glittered with carbuncles, and sapphires ; 
he flew with his face downwards, and alighted gently on the 
ground, near where 1 was standing. As soon as he touched the 
ground with his feet, he stood erect, and walked to and fro; 
and on seeing me he directed his steps towards me, I was in 
the ftpiritj and was standing in that state on a little eminence in 
the southern quarter of tne spiritual world, "When he came 
near, I addressed him and asked him his errand, telling him 
that 1 had heard the sound of his trumpet, and had observed 
his descent through the air. He replied, u My commission is to 



CONJUG-IAL LOVE 

call together such of the Inhabitants of this part of the spiritual 
world, as have come hither from the various kingdoms of Chris- 
tendom, and have heen most distinguished for their learning, 
their ingenuity, and their wisdom, to assemble on this little 
eminence where you are now standing, and to declare their real 
sentiments, as to what they had thought, understood, and 
inwardly perceived, while in the natural world, respecting 
HEAVENLY JOT and ETERNAL HAPPINESS. The occasion of my 
commission is this: several who have lately come from the natu- 
ral world, and have been admitted into our heavenly^society, 
which is in the east, have informed us, that there is not a, 
single person throughout the whole Christian world that is 
acquainted with the true nature of heavenly joy and eternal 
happiness ; consequently that not a single person is acquainted 
with the nature of heaven. This information greatly surprised 
my brethren and companions ; and they said to me, ' G-o down, 
call together and assemble those who are most eminent for wis- 
dom in the world of spirits, (where all men are first collected 
after their departure oufc of the natural world,) so that we may 
know of a certainty, from the testimony of many, whether it 
be true that such thick darkness, or dense ignorance, respecting 
a future life, prevails among Christians.' " The angel then said 
to me, " Wait awhile, and you will see several companies of the 
wise ones flocking together to this place, and the Lord will pre- 
pare them a house of assembly." I waited, and lo! in the 
space of half an hour, I saw two companies from the north, 
two from the west, and two from the south ; and as they came 
near, they were introduced by the angel that blew the trumpet 
into the house of assembly prepared for them, where they took 
t'leir places in the order of the quarters from which they came. 
There were six groups or companies, and a seventh from the 
east, which, from its superior light, was not visible to the rest. 
When they were all assembled, the angel explained to them the 
reason of their meet-ing, and desired that each company in order 
would declare their sentiments respecting HEAVENLY JOY and 
ETERNAL HAPPINESS. Then each company formed themselves 
into a ring, with their faces turned one towards another, that 
they might recall the ideas they had entertained upon the sub* 
ject in the natural world, and after examination and delibera- 
tion might declare their sentiments. 

8. After some deliberation, the FIRST COMPANY, which was 
from the north, declared their opinion, that heavenly joy and 
eternal happiness constitute the very life of heaven ; so much so 
that whoever enters heaven, enters, in regard to his life, into its 
festivities, just as a person admitted to a marriage enters into 
all the festivities of a marriage. " Is not heaven," they argued, 
44 before our eyes in a particular place above us? and is there 
not there and nowhere else a constant succession of satisfactions 
6 "~~ ' 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 3 

and pleasures i When a man therefore is admitted into heaven, 
he is also admitted into the fall enjoyment of all these satisfac- 
tions and pleasures, both as to tnental perception and bodily 
sensation. Of course heavenly happiness, which is also eternal 
happiness, consists solely in admission into heaven, and that 
depends purely on the divine mercy and favor." They having 
concluded, the SECOND COMPANY from the north, according to 
the measure of the wisdom with which they were endowed, next 
declared their sentiments as follows : " Heavenly joy and eternal 
happiness consist solely in the enjoyment of the company of 
angels, and in holding sweet communications with them, so that 
the countenance is kept continually expanded with joy ; while 
the smiles of mirth and pleasure, arising from cheerful and 
entertaining conversation, continually enliven the faces of 
the company. What else can constitute heavenly joys, but the 
variations of such pleasures to eternity?" The THIRD COM- 
PANY, which was the first of the wise ones from the western 
quarter, next declared their sentiments according to the ideas 
which flowed from their affections : " In what else," said they, 
" do heavenly joy and eternal happiness consist but in feasting 
with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob ; at whose tables there will be 
an abundance of rich and delicate food, with the finest and most 
generous wines, which will be succeeded by sports and dances 
of virgins and young men, to the tunes of various musical 
instruments, enlivened by the most melodious singing of sweet 
songs ; the evening to conclude with dramatic exhibitions, and 
this again to be followed by feasting, and so on to eternity ?" 
"When they had ended, the FOURTH COMPANY, which was the 
second from the western quarter, declared their sentiments to 
the following purpose : " We have entertained," said' they, 
" many ideas respecting heavenly joy and eternal happiness ; 
and we have examined a variety of joys, and compared them 
one with another, and have at length come to the conclusion, 
that heavenly joys are paradisiacal joys : for what is heaven but 
a paradise extended from the east to the west, and from the 
south to the north, wherein are tj^ees ladenjmth- fruit, and all 
kind^^of^beautiful flowers, and uTtKe midst the magnificent 
tree of life*, around which the blessed will take their seats, and 
feed on fruits most delicious to the taste, being adorned witli 
garlands of the sweetest smelling flowers? In this paradise 
there will be a perpetual spring ; so that the fruits and flowera 
will be renewed every day with an infinite variety, and by theif 
continual growth and freshness, added to the vernal tempera- 
ture of the atmosphere, the souls of the blessed will be daily 
fitted to receive and taste new joys, till they shall be restored 
to the flower of their age, and finally to their primitive state, 
in which Adam and his wife were created, and thus recover 
their paradise, which has been transplanted from earth to hea- 



8, 4 COSTJIJGIAL LOVE 

ven." The FIFTH COMPANY, which was the first of the ingenious 
spirits from the southern quarter, next delivered their opinion: 
" Heavenly joys and eternal happiness," said they, " consist 
solely in exalted power and dignity, and in abundance of 
wealth, joined with more than princely magnificence and 
splendor. That the joys of heaven, and their continual fruition, 
which is eternal happiness, consist in these things, is plain to 
us from the examples of such persons as enjoyed them in the 
former world ; and also from this circumstance, that the blessed 
in heaven are to reign with the Lord, and to become kings and 
princes ; for they are the sons of him who is King of kings and 
Lord of lords, and they are to sit on thrones and be ministered 
to by angels. Moreover, the magnificence of heaven is plainly 
made known to us by the description given of the New Jerusa- 
lem, wherein is represented the glory of heaven ; that it is to 
have gates, each of which shall consist of a single pearl, and 
streets of pure gold, and a wall with foundations of precious 
stones ; consequently, every one that is received into heaven 
will have a palace of his own, glittering with gold and other 
costly materials, and will enjoy dignity and dominion, each 
according to his quality and station : and since we find by ex- 
perience, that the joys and happiness arising from such things 
are natural, and as it were, innate in us, and since the promises 
of God cannot fail, we therefore conclude that the most happy 
state of heavenly life can be derived from no other source than 
this." After this, the SIXTH COMPANY, which was the second 
from the southern quarter, with a loud voice spoke as follows : 
"The joy of heaven and its eternal happiness consist solely in 
the perpetual glorification of God, in a never-ceasing festival 
of praise and thanksgiving, and in the blessedness of divine 
worship, heightened with singing and melody, whereby the 
heart is kept in a constant state of elevation towards God, under 
a full persuasion that he accepts such prayers and praises, on 
account of the divine bounty in imparting blessedness." Some 
of the company added further, that this glorification would be 
attended with magnificent illuminations, with most fragrant 
incense, and with stately processions, preceded by the chief 
priest with a grand trumpet, who would be followed by pri- 
mates and officers of various orders, by men carrying palms, 
and^ byjw:omen with golden images in their hand. 
" ' r *"i. The SEVENTH COMPANY, Which, from its superior light, 
was invisible to the rest, came from the east of neaven, and 
consisted of angels of the same society as the angel that had 
sounded the trumpet. When these heard in -their heaven, that 
not a single person throughout the Christian world was ac- 
quainted with the true nature of heavenly joy and eternal hap- 
piness, they said one to another, "Surely this cannot be true; 
it is impossible that such thick darkness and stupidity should 
8 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 4r, $ 

prevail amongst Christians: let us even go down and hear 
whether it be true; for if it be so, it is indeed wonderful.' 7 Then 
those angels said to the one that had the trumpet, " You know 
that every one that has desired heaven, and lias formed any 
definite conception in his mind respecting its joys, is introduced 
after death into those particular joys which he had imagined ; 
and after he experiences that such joys are only the offspring 
of the vain delusions of his own fancy, he is led out of his error, 
and instructed in the truth. This is the case with most of those 
In the world of spirits, who in their former life have thought 
about heaven, and from their notions of its joys have desired to 
possess them." On hearing this, the angel that had the trumpet 
said to the six companies of the assembled wise ones, " Follow 
me; and I will introduce you into your respective joys, and 
thereby into heaven." 

5. When the angel had thus spoken, he went before them ; 
and he was first attended by the company who were of opinion* 
that the joys of heaven consisted solely in pleasant associations, 
and entertaining conversation. These the angel introduced to 
an assembly of spirits in the northern quarter, who, during their 
abode in the former world, had entertained the same ideas of 
the joys of heaven. There was in the place a large and 
spacious house, wherein all these spirits were assembled. In 
the house there were more than fifty different apartments, al- 
lotted to different kinds and subjects of conversation : in some 
of these apartments they conversed about such matters as they 
had seen or heard in the public places of resort and the streets 
of the city ; in others the conversation turned upon the various 
charms of the fair sex, with a mixture of wit and humor, pro- 
ducing cheerful smiles on the countenances of all present; in 
others they talked about the news relating to courts, to public 
ministers, and state policy, and to various matters which had 
transpired from privy councils, interspersing many conjectures 
and reasonings of their own respecting the issues of such coun- 
cils ; in others again they conversed about trade and merchan- 
dise; in others upon subjects of literature; in others upon 
points of civil prudence and morals ; and in others about affairs 
relating to the Church, its sects, &c. Permission was granted 
me to enter and look about the house; and I saw people 
running from one apartment to another, seeking such company 
as was most suited to their own tempers and inclinations ; and 
in the different parties I could distinguish three kinds of per- 
sons ; some as it were panting to converse, some eager to ask 
questions, and others greedily devouring what was said. The 
liouse had four doors, one towards each quarter ; and I observed 
several leaving their respective companies with a great desire 
to get out of the house. I followed some of them to the east 
door, where I saw several sitting with great rr arks of dejection 

9 



5, 6 COtfJTGLAX LOVE 

on their faces ; and on my inquiring into the cause of their 
trouble, they replied, " The doors of this house are kept shut 
against all persons who wish to go out ; and this is the third 
day since we entered, to be entertained according to our desire 
with company and conversation; and now we are grown so 
weary with continual discoursing, that we can scarcely bear to 
hear the sound of a human voice ; wherefore, from mere irk- 
Bomeness, we have betaken ourselves to this door ; but on our 
knocking to have it opened, we were told, that the doors of this 
house are never opened to let any persons out, but only to let 
them in, and that we must stay here and enjoy the delights of 
heaven ; from which information we conclude, that we are to 
remain here to eternity; and this is the cause of our sorrow and 
lowness of spirits ; now too we begin to feel an oppression in 
the breast, and to be overwhelmed with anxiety." The angel 
then addressing them said : " These things in which you ima- 
rgined the true joys of heaven to consist, prove, you find, the 
i destruction of all happiness; since they do not of themselves 
constitute true heavenly joys, but only contribute thereto." " In 
what then," said they to the angel, " does heavenly joy con- 
sist?" The angel replied briefly, "In, the delight of doing 
something that is useful to ourselves and others ; which delight 
derives its essence from loje and its existence from wisdom. 
TPh'e delight of being useful, originating in love, and operating 
by wisdom, is the very soul and life of all heavenly joys. In 
the heavens there are frequent occasions of cheerful intercourse 
and conversation, whereby the minds (mentes) of the angels are 
exhilarated, their minds (animi) entertained, their bosoms de- 
lighted, and their bodies refreshed ; but such occasions do not 
o^cur, till they have fulfilled their appointed uses in the dis- 
charge of their respective business and duties. It is this ful- 
filling of uses that gives soul and life to all their delights and 
entertainments; and if this soul and life be taken away, the 
contributory joys gradually cease, first exciting indifference, 
then disgust, and lastly sorrow and anxiety." As the angel 
ended, the door was thrown open, and those who were sitting 
near it burst out in haste, and went home to their respective 
labors and employments, and so found relief and refreshment 
to their spirits. 

6. After this the angel addressed those who fancied the joys 
of heaven and eternal happiness consisted of partaking of feasts 
with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, succeeded by sports and 
pub-ic exhibitions, and these by other feasts, and so on to eter- 
nity. He said, " Follow me ; and I will introduce you into 
the possession of your enjoyments :" and immediately he led 
them through a grove into a plain floored with planks, on which 
were set tables, fifteen on one side and fifteen on the other. 
They then asked, " What is the meaning of so many tables 'f 
10 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 6 

and the angel replied, " The first table is for Abraham, the 
second for Isaac, the third for Jacob, and the rest in order for 
the twelve apostles : on the other side are the same number of 
tables for their wives ; the first three are for Sarah, Abraham's 
wife, for Rebecca, the wife of Isaac, and for Leah and Rachel, 
the wives of Jacob ; and the other twelve are for the wives of 
the twelve apostles." They had not waited long before the 
tables were covered with dishes ; between which, at stated dis- 
tances, were ornaments of small pyramids holding sweetmeats. 
The guests stood around the tables waiting to see their respect- 
ive presidents: these soon entered according to their order of 
precedency, beginning with Abraham, and ending with the last 
of the apostles ; and then each president, taking his place at the 
head of his own table, reclined on a couch, and invited the by- 
standers to take their places, each on his couch : accordingly 
the men reclined with the patriarchs and apostles, and the 
women with their wives : and they ate and drank with much 
festivity, but. with due decorum. When the repast was ended, 
the patriarchs and apostles retired ; and then were introduced 
various sports and dances of virgins and young men ; and these 
were succeeded by exhibitions. At th'e conclusion of these 
entertainments, they were again invited to feasting ; but with 
this particular restriction, that on the first day they should eat 
with Abraham, on the second with Isaac, on the third with 
Jacob, on the fourth with Peter, on the fifth with James, on 
the sixth with John, on the seventh with Paul, and with the 
rest in order till the fifteenth day, when their festivity should 
be renewed again in like order, only changing their seats, and 
so on to eternity. After this the angel called together the 
company that had attended him, and said to them, a All those 
whom you have observed at the several tables, had entertained 
the same imaginary ideas as yourselves, respecting the joys of 
heaven and eternal happiness ; and it is with the intent that 
they may see the vanity of such ideas, and be withdrawn from 
them, that those festive representations were appointed and 
permitted by the Lord, Those who with so much dignity pre- 
sided at the tables, were merely old people and feigned charao 
ters, many of them husbandmen and peasants, who, wearing 
long beards, and from their wealth being exceedingly proud 
and arrogant, were easily induced to imagine that they were 
those patriarchs and apostles. But follow me to the ways that 
lead from this place of festivity." They accordingly followed, 
and observed groups of fifty or more, here and there, surfeited 
with the load of meat which lay on their stomachs, and wishing 
above all things to return to their domestic employments, their 
professions, trades, and handicraft works ; but many of them 
were detained by the keepers of the grove, who questioned 
them concerning the days they had feasted, and whether they 



6, 7 CONJTOIAL LOVE 

had as jet taken their turns with Peter and Paul ; representing 
to them the shame and indecency of departing till they had 
paid equal respect to the apostles. But me general reply was, 
" We are surfeited with our entertainment ; our food has be- 
come insipid to us, we have lost all relish for it, and the very 
sight of it is loathsome to us ; we have spent many days and 
nights in such repasts of luxury, and can endure it no longer: 
we therefore earnestly request leave to depart." Then the 
keepers dismissed them, and they made all possible haste to 
their respective homes. 

After this the angel called the company that attended him, 
and as they went along he gave them the following information 
respecting heaven : " There are in heaven," says he, " as in the 
world, both meats and drinks, both feasts and repasts; and at 
the tables of the great there is a variety of the most exquisite 
food, and all kinds of rich dainties and delicacies, wherewith 
their minds are exhilarated and refreshed. There are likewise 
sports and exhibitions, concerts of music, vocal and instrumen- 
tal, and all these things in the highest perfection. Such things 
are a source of joy to them, but not of happiness ; for happiness 
ought to be within external joys, and to flow from them. This 
inward happiness abiding in external joys, is necessary to give 
them their proper relish, and make them joys ; it enriches them, 
and prevents their becoming loathsome and disgusting ; and this 
happiness is derived to every angel from the use he performs in 
his duty or employment. Xbgre is- a* certain vein4ateut in the 
aff&ctipn w of the will of every angel, which attract^his. mind .to 
titxe execution of some purpose or other, wherein his mind fiu(ls 
itself icu tranquillity, and is satisfied. This tranquillity an3 
satisfaction form a state of mind capable of receiving from the 
Lord the love of uses; and from the reception ot this love 
springs heavenly happiness, which is the life of the above- 
mentioned joys. Heavenly food in its essence is nothing but 
love, wisdom, and use united together ; that is, use effected by 
wisdom and derived from love ; wherefore food for the body is 
given to every one in heaven according to the use which he 
performs ; sumptuous food to those who perform eminent uses ; 
moderate, but of an exquisite relish, to those who perform less 
eminent uses ; and ordinary to such as live in the performance 
of ordinary uses ; but none at all to the slothful. 

7. After this the angel called to him the company of the so- 
called wise ones, who supposed heavenly joys, and the eternal 
happiness thence derived, to consist in exalted power and do- 
minion, with the possession of abundant treasures, attended 
with more than princely splendor and magnificence, and who 
had been betrayed into this supposition by what is written in 
the Word, that they should be kings and princes, and should 
reign for ever witn Christ, and should be ministered tmto by 
12 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 7 

angels ; with many other similar expressions. " Follow me," 
said tho angel to^them, " and I will introduce you to your joys." 
So Le led them into a portico constructed of pillars and pyra- 
mids : in the front there was a low porch, through which lay 
the entrance to the portico ; through this porch lie introduced 
them, and lo ! there appeared to be about twenty people as- 
sembled. After waiting some time, they were accosted by a 
certain person, having the garb and appearance of an angel, 
and who said to them, " The way to heaven is through this 
portico ; wait awhile and prepare yourselves ; for the elder 
among you are to be kings, and the younger princes." As he 
said this, they saw near each pillar a throne, and on each throne 
a silken robe, and on each robe a sceptre and crown ; and near 
each pyramid a seat raised three feet from the ground, and on 
each seat a massive gold chain, and the ensigns of an order of 
knighthood, fastened at each end with diamond clasps. After 
this they heard a voice, saying, " Go now and put on your 
robes; be seated, and wait awhile:" and instantly the elder 
ones ran to the thrones, and the younger to the seats ; and they 
put on their robes and seated themselves. When lo ! there 
arose a mist from below, which, communicating its influence to 
those on the thrones and the seats, caused them instantly to as- 
sume airs of authority, and to swell with their new greatness, 
and to be persuaded in good earnest that they were kings and 
princes. That mist was an aura of phantasy or imagination 
with which their minds were possessed. Then on a sudden, 
several young pages presented themselves, as if they came on 
wings from heaven ; and two of them stood in waiting behind 
every throne, and one behind every seat. Afterwards at inter* 
vals a herald proclaimed : " Ye kings and princes, wait a little 
longer ; your palaces in heaven are making ready for you ; 
your courtiers and guards will soon attend to introduce you." 
Then they waited and waited in anxious expectation, till their 
spirits were exhausted, and they grew weary with desire. 

After about three hours, the heavens above them were seen 
to open, and the angels looked down, in pity upon them, and 
said, " "Why sit ye in this state of infatuation, assuming charac- 
ters which do not belong to you ? They have made a mockery 
of you, and have changed you from men into mere images, be- 
cause of the imagination which has possessed you, that you 
should reign with Christ as kings and princes, and that angels 
should minister unto you. Have you forgotten the Lord's 
words, that whosoever would be the greatest in the kingdom of 
heaven, must be the least of all, and the servant of all ? Learn 
then what is meant by kings and princes, and by reigning with 
Christ; that it is to be wise and perform uses. The kingdom 
of Christ, which is heaven, is a kingdom of uses ; for the Lord 
loves every one, and is desirous to do good to every one; and 

-Lo 



CONJUGIAL LO\E 



good Is the same thing as use : and as the Lord promotes good 
or use by the mediation of angels in heaven, and of men on 
eaith, therefore to such as faithfully perform uses, he commu- 
nicates the love thereof, and its reward, which is internal bles- 
sedness ; and this is true eternal happiness. There are in the 
heavens, as on earth, distinctions of dignity and eminence, with 
abundance of the richest treasures; for there are governments 
and forms of government, and consequently a variety of ranks 
and orders of power and authority. Those of the highest rank 
have courts and palaces to live in, which for splendor and 
magnificence exceed every thing that the kings and princes of 
the earth can boast of; and they derive honor and glory from 
the number and magnificence of their courtiers, ministers, and 
attendants; but then these persons of high rank are chosen 
from those whose heartfelt delight consists in promoting the 
public good, and who are only externally pleased with the dis- 
tinctions of dignity for the sake of order and obedience ; and 
as the public good requires that every individual, being a 
member of the common body, should be an instrument of use 
in the society to which he belongs, which use is from the Lord 
and is effected by angels and men as of themselves, it is plain 
that this is meant by reigning with the Lord." As soon as the 
angels had concluded, the kings and princes descended from 
their thrones and seats, and cast away their sceptres, crowns, 
and robes ; and the mist which contained the aura of phantasy 
was dispersed, and a bright cloud, containing the aura of wisdom 
encompassed them, and thus they were presently restored to 
their sober senses. 

8. After this the angel returned to the house of assembly, 
and called to him those who had conceived the joys of heaven 
and eternal happiness to consist in paradisiacal delights ; to 
whom he said, " Follow me, and I will introduce you into your 
paradisiacal heaven, that you may enter upon the beatitudes of 
your eternal happiness." Immediately he introduced them 
through a lofty portal, formed of the boughs and shoots of the 
finest trees interwoven with each other. After their admission, 
he led them through a variety of winding paths in different 
directions. The place was a real paradise, ou the confines of 
heaven, intended tor the reception of such as, during their abode 
on earth, had fancied the whole heaven to be a single paradise, 
because it is so called, and had been led to conceive that after 
death there would be a perfect rest from all kinds of labor ; 
which rest would consist in a continual feast of pleasures, such 
as walking among roses, being exhilarated with the most ex- 
quisite wines, and participating in continual mirth and festivity; 
and that this kind of life could only be enjoyed in a heavenly 
paradise. As they followed the angel, they saw a great number 
of old and young, of both sexes, sitting by threes and tens iu a 

14: 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 8 

company on banks of roses ; some of whom were wreathing 
garlands to adorn the heads of the seniors, the arms of the 
voung, and the bosoms of the children ; others were pressing 
the juice out of grapes, cherries, and mulberries, which they 
collected in cups, and then drank with much festivity ; some 
were delighting themselves with the fragrant smells that exhaled 
far and wide from the flowers, fruits, and odoriferous leaves of 
a variety of plants ; others were singing most melodious songs, 
to the great entertainment of the hearers ; some were sitting 
by the sides of fountains, and directing the bubbling streams 
into various forms and channels ; others were walking, and 
amusing one another with cheerful and pleasant conversation ; 
others were retiring into shady arbors to repose on couches ; 
besides a variety of other paradisiacal entertainment. After 
observing these things, the angel led his companions through 
various winding paths, till he brought them at length to a 
most beautiful grove of roses, surrounded by olive, orange, and 
citron trees. Here they found many persons sitting in a dis- 
consolate posture, with their heads reclined on their hand, 
and exhibiting all the signs of sorrow and discontent. The 
companions of the angel accosted them, and inquired into 
the cause of their grief. They replied, " This is the seventh day 
since we came into this paradise : on our first admission we 
seemed to ourselves to be elevated into heaven, and introduced 
into a participation of its inmost joys; but after three days our 
pleasures began to pall on the appetite, and our relish was lost, 
till at length we became insensible to their taste, and found that 
they had lost the power of pleasing. Our imaginary joys being 
thus annihilated we were afraid of losing with them all the satis- 
faction of life, and we began to doubt whether any such thing as 
eternal happiness exists. We then wandered through a variety 
of paths and passages, in search of the gate at which we were 
admitted ; but our wandering was in vain : for on inquiring the 
way of some persons we met, they informed us, that it was im- 
possible to find the gate, as this paradisiacal garden is a spacious 
labyrinth of such a nature, that whoever wishes to go out, enters 
further and further into it; ' wherefore,' said they, c you must of 
necessity remain here to eternity ; you are now in the middle of 
the garden, where all delights are centred.*" They further said 
to the angel's companions, " We have now been in this place for 
a day ana a half, and as we despair of ever finding our way out, 
we have sat down to repose on this bank of roses, where we view 
around us olive-trees, vines, orange and citron-trees, in great 
abundance ; but the longer we look at them, the more our eyea 
are wearied with seeing, our noses with smelling, and our palates 
with tasting : and this is the cause of the sadness, sorrow, and 
weeping, in which you now behold us." On hearing this rela- 
tion, the attendant angel said to them, "This paradisiacal laby 

15 



ASTD rrs CHASTE DELIGHTS, 



rinth is truly an entrance into heaven ; I know the way that leads 
out of it ; and if you will follow me, I will shew it you." JN o 
sooner had he uttered those words than they arose from the 
ground, and, embracing the angel, attended him with his com- 
panions. The angel as they went along, instructed them m the 
true nature of heavenly joy and eternal happiness thence derived. 
"they do not," said he, "consist in external paradisiacal de- 
Rights, unless they are also attended with internal External 
paradisiacal delights reach only the senses of the body ; but 
internal paradisiacal delights reach the affections of the soul ; 
and the former without the latter are devoid of all heavenly life, 
because they are devoid of soul ; and every delight without its 
corresponding soul, continually grows more and more* languid 
and dull, and fatigues the mind more than labor. ^ There are in 
every part of heaven paradisiacal gardens, in which the angels 
find much joy ; and so far as it is attended with a delight of the 
soul, the joy is real and true." Hereupon they all asked, " "What 
is the delight of the soul, and whence is it derived ?" The angel 
replied, "The delight of the soul is derived from love and wisdom 
proceeding from the Lord; and as love is operative, and that by 
means, of wisdom, therefore they are both fixed^together in the 
effect of such operation ; which effect is use. This delight enters 
into the soul by influx from the Lord, and descends through the 
superior and inferior regions of the mind into all the senses of 
the body, and in them is full and complete ; becoming hereby a 
true joy, and partaking of an eternal nature from the eternal 
fountain whence it proceeds. You have just now seen a para- 
disiacal garden ; and I can assure you that there is not a single 
thing therein, even the smallest leaf, which does not exist from 
the, marriage pfJloxQ ajid W&4&I3 **yiS? wherefore if a man be 
in this marriage, he is in a cdesSSlparadise, and therefore in 
heaven." 

9. After this, the conducting angel returned to the house of 
assembly, and addressed those who had persuaded themselves 
that heavenly joy and eternal happiness consist in a perpetual 
glorification of God, and a continued festival of prayer and praise 
to eternity ; in consequence of a belief they had entertained in 
the world that they should then see God, and because the life of 
heaven, originating in the worship of God, is called a perpetual 
sabbath. " Follow me," said the angel to them, " and I will 
introduce you to your joy." So he led them into a little city, in 
the middle of which was a temple, and where all the houses were 
said to be consecrated chapels. In that city they observed a great 
concourse of people flocking together from all parts of the neigh- 
boring country ; and among them a number of priests, who 
received and saluted them on their arrival, and led them by the 
hand to the gates of the temple, and from thence into some of 
the chapels around it, where they initiated them into the per 
16 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 9 

petual worship of God ; telling them that the city was one of the 
courts leading to heaven, and that the temple was an entrance to 
a most spacious and magnificent temple in heaven, where the 
angels glorify God by prayers and praises to eternity. "It is 
ordained," said they, " both here and in heaven, that you are 
first to enter into the temple, and remain there for three days 
and three nights" and after this initiation you are to enter the 
houses of the city, which are so many chapels consecrated by us 
to divine worship, and in every house join the congregation in a 
communion of prayers, praises, and repetitions of holy things ; 
you are to take heed also that nothing but pious, holy, and reli- 
gious subjects enter into your thoughts, or make a part of your 
conversation," After this the angel introduced his companions 
into the temple, which they found filled and crowded with many 
persons, who on earth had lived in exalted stations, and also 
with many of an inferior class : guards were stationed at the 
doors to prevent any one from departing until he had completed 
his stay of three days. v , ; Th.en said the angel, " This is ,the second 
day since the present congregation entered the temple : examine 
them, and you will see their manner of glorifying God." On 
their examining them, they observed that most of them were fast 
asleep, and that those who were awake were listless and yawning; 
many of them, in consequence of the continual elevation of their 
thoughts to G-od, without any attention to the inferior concerns 
of the body, seemed to themselves, and thence also to others, as 
if their faces were unconnected with their bodies ; several again 
had a wild and raving look with their eyes, because of their long 
abstraction from visible objects; in short, every one, being quite 
tired out, seemed to feel an oppression at the chest, and great 
weariness of spirits, which showed itself in a violent aversion to 
what they heard from the pulpit, so that they^ cried out to tho 
preacher to put an end to his discourse, for their ears were stun- 
ned, they could not understand a single word he said, and the 
very sound of his voice was become painful to them. They 
then all left their seats, and, crowding in a body to the doors, 
broke them open, and by mere violence made their way through 
the guards. The priests hereupon followed, and walked close 
beside them, teaching, praying, sighing, and encouraging them, to 
celebrate the solemn festival, and to glorify God, and sanctify 
themselves ; " and then," said they, " we will initiate you into 
the eternal glorification of God in that most magnificent and 
spacious temple which is in heaven, and so will introduce you 
to the enjoyment of eternal happiness." These words, however, 
made but little impression upon thern, on account of the listless- 
ness of their minds, arising from the long elevation of their 
thoughts above their ordinary labors and employments* But 
when they attempted to disengage themselves from them, the 
priests caught hold of their hands and garments, in order to force 

2 17 



IQ OONJTJCHAL LOVE 



them back ag?M into the temple to a repetition of their prayers 
and praises; but in vain: they insisted on bein<? left to them 
selves to recruit their spirits ; " we shall else die," they said, 
" through mere faintness and weariness." At that instant, lol 
there appeared four men in white garments, with mitres on their 
heads; one of them while on earth had been an archbishop, and 
the other three bishops, all of whom had now become angels. Aa 
they approached, they addressed themselves to the priests, and 
said, " We have observed from heaven how you feed these sheep. 
Your instruction tends to their infatuation. Do you not know 
that to glorify God means to bring forth the fruits of love ; that 
is, to discharge all the duties of our callings with faithfulness, 
sincerity, and diligence? for this is the nature of love towards 
God and our neighbor; and this is the bond and blessing of 
society. Hereby God is glorified, as well as by acts of worship 
at stated times after these duties. Have you never read these 
words of the Lord, Herein is my Father^ glorified, that ye bring 
forth muchfruit; so shall ye be my disciples^ John xv.^8. Ye 
"priests indeed may glorify God by your attendance on his wor- 
jpiip, since this is your office, and from the discharge of it you 
*derive honor, glory, and recompense ; but it would be as impos- 
sible* for you as for others thus to glorify God, unless honor, 
glory, and recompense were annexed to your office." Having 
said this, the bishops ordered the doorkeepers to give free ingress 
and egress to all, there being so great a number of people, who, 
from their ignorance of the state and nature of heaven, can form 
no other idea of heavenly joy than that it consists in the per- 
petual worship of God. 

10. After this the angel returned with his companions to the 
place of assembly, where the several companions or the wise ones 
were still waiting ; and next he addressed those who fancied that 
heavenly joy and eternal happiness depend only on admittance 
into heaven, which is obtained merely by divine grace and favor ; 
and that in such case the persons introduced would enter into the 
enjoyments of heaven, just as those introduced to a court- festival 
or a marriage, enter into the enjoyment of such scenes. "Wait 
here awhile," said the angel, " until I sound my trumpet, and 
call together those who have been most distinguished for their 
wisdom in regard to the spiritual things of the Church." After 
some hours, there appeared nine men, each having a wreath of 
laurel on his head as a mark of distinction : these the angel intro* 
duced into the house of assembly, where all the companies befoie 
collected were still waiting ; and then in their presence he ad- 
dressed the nine strangers, and said, " I am informed, that in 
compliance with your desire, you have been permitted to ascend 
into heaven, according to you ideas thereof, and that you have 
returned to this inferior or sub-celestial earth, perfectly well 
informed as to the nature and state of heaven : tell us therefore 
18 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 10 

what you have seen, and how heaven appeared to you." Then 
they replied in order ; and the FIEST thus began : " My idea of 
heaven from my earliest infancy to the end of my life on earth 
was, that it was a place abounding with all sorts of blessings, 
satisfactions, enjoyments, gratifieations ? and delights ; and that if 
I were introduced there, I should be encompassed as by an at- 
mosphere of such felicities, and should receive it with the highest 
relish, like a bridegroom at the celebration of his nuptials, and 
when he enters the chamber with his bride. Full of this idea, I 
ascended into heaven, and passed the first guard and also the 
second ; but when I came to the third, the captain of the guard 
accosted me and said, " Who are you, friend?" I replied, "Is 
not this heaven ? My longing desire to ascend into heaven has 
brought me hither ; I pray you therefore permit me to enter." 
Then he permitted me ; and I saw angels in white garments, who 
came about me and examined me, and whispered to each other, 
' What new guest is this, who is not clothed in heavenly rai- 
ment ?' I heard what they said, and thought within myself, 
This is a similar case to that which the Lord describes, of the 
person who came to the wedding, and had not on a wedding gar- 
ment: and I said, 'Give me such garments ;' at which they 
smiled : and instantly one came from the judgment-hall with this 
command : < Strip him naked, cast him out, and throw his clothes 
after him ;' and so I was cast out." The SECOND in order then 
began as follows : " I also supposed that if I were but admitted 
into heaven, which was over my head, I should there be encom- 
passed with joys, which I should partake of to eternity. I like- 
wise wished to be there, and my wish was granted ; but the 
angels on seeing me fled away, and said one to another, c What 
prodigy is this ! how came this bird of night here ?' On hearing 
which, I really felt as if I had undergone some change, and was 
no longer a man : this however was merely imaginary, and arose 
from my breathing the heavenly atmosphere. Presently, how- 
ever, there came one running from the judgment-hall, with an 
order that two servants should lead me out, and conduct me back 
by the way I had ascended, till I had reached my own home ;, 
and when I arrived there, I again appeared to others and also to 
myself as a man." The THIRD said, " I always conceived hea- 
ven to be some place of blessedness independent of the state of 
the affections ; wherefore as soon as I came into this world, I felt 
a most ardent desire to go to heaven. Accordingly I followed 
some whom I saw ascending thither, and was admitted along 
with them ; but I did not proceed far ; for when I was desirous 
to delight my mind (animus) according to my idea of heavenly 
blessedness, a sudden stupor, occasioned by the light of heaven, 
which is as white as snow, and whose essence is said to be wis- 
dom, seized my mind (mens), and darkness my eyes, and I waa 
reduced to a state of insanity : and presently, from the heat of 
heaven, which corresponds with the brightness of its light, and 



10 CON" JUG I AL LOVE 

whose essence is said to be love, there arose in my heart a via 
lent palpitation, a general uneasiness seized ray whole frame, and 
I was inwardly excruciated to such a degree that I threw mys-eli 
flat on the ground. While I was in this situation, one of the 
attendants came from the judgment-hall with an order to carry 
me gently to my own light and heat ; and when I came there my 
spirit and my heart presently returned to me." The FOURTH said, 
that he also had conceived heaven to be some place of blessedness 
independent of the state of the affections. " As soon therefore," 
said lie, " as I came into the spiritual world, I inquired of cer- 
tain wise ones whether I might be permitted to ascend into hea 
ven, and was informed that this liberty was granted to all, but 
that there was need of caution how they used it, lest they should 
be cast down again. I made light of this caution, and ascended 
in full confidence that all were alike qualified for the reception 
of heavenly bliss in all its fulness : but alas ! I was no sooner 
within the"confines of heaven, than my life seemed to be depart- 
ing from me, and from the violent pains and anguish which 
seized m3 T head and body, I threw myself prostrate on the ground, 
where I writhed about like a snake when it is brought near the 
fire. In this state I crawled to the brink of a precipice, from 
which I threw myself down, and being taken up by some people 
who were standing near the place where I fell, by proper care I 
was soon brought to myself again." The other FIVE then gave a 
wonderful relation of what befell them in their ascents into hea- 
ven, and compared the changes they experienced as to their states 
of life, with the state of fisli when raised out of water into air, 
and with that of birds when raised out of air into ether ; and 
they declared that, after having suffered so much pain, they had 
no longer any desire to ascend into heaven, and only wished to 
live a life agreeable to the state of their own affections, among 
their like in any place whatever. " We are well informed," they 
added, " that in the world of spirits, where we now are, all per- 
sons undergo a previous preparation, the good for heaven, and the 
wicked for hell ; and that after such preparation they discover 
ways open for them to societies of their like, with whom they 
are to live eternally ; and that they enter such ways with the 
utmost delight, because they are suitable to their love." When 
those of the first assembly had heard these relations, they all 
likewise acknowledged, that they had never entertained any 
other notion of heaven than as of a place where they should 
enter upon the fruition of never-ceasing delights. Then the 
angel wltio had the trumpet thus addressed them : " You see now 
that the joys of heaven and eternal happiness arise not from the 
place, but from the state of the man's life ; and a state of hea- 
venly life is^derived from love and wisdom; and since it is use 
which contains love and wisdom, and in which they are fixed anil 
subsist, Jjiejfo*e-a -state of heavenly life is. derived, from the-eou- . 

junction of love an<Lwisdom in 'Wei "If amounts to the same 

- -..., 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 10, 11 

if we call them charity, faith, and good works ; for charity is 
love, faith is truth whence wisdom is derived, and good works 
are uses. Moreover in our spiritual world there are places as in 
the natural world ; otherwise there could be no habitations and 
distinct abodes ; nevertheless place with us is not place, but an 
appearance of place according to the state of love and wisdom, or 
of char it) and faith. Every one who becomes an angel, carries 
his own heaven within himself, because he carries in himself the 
love of his own heaven ; for a man from creation is the smallest 
effigy, image, and type of the great heaven, and the human form 
is nothing else ; wherefore every one after death comes into that 
society of heaven of whose general form he is an individual effigy ; 
consequently, when he enters into that society he enters into a 
form corresponding to his own ; thus he passes as it were from 
himself into that form as into another self, and again from that 
other self into the same form in himself, and enjoys his own life 
in that of the society, and that of the society in his own ; for 
every society in heaven may be considered as one common body, 
and the constituent angels as the similar parts thereof, from 
which the common body exists. Hence it follows, that those 
who are in evils, and thence in falses, have formed in themselves 
an effigy of hell, which suffers torment in heaven from the influx 
and violent activity of one opposite upon another ; for infernal 
'ove is opposite to heavenly love, and consequently the delights 
of those two loves are in a state of discord and enmity, and 
whenever they meet they endeavor to destroy each other." 

11. After this a voice was heard from heaven, saying to the 
angel that had the trumpet, " Select ten out of the whole assem- 
bly, and introduce them to us. We have heard from the Lord 
that He will prepare them so as to prevent the heat and light, 
or the love and wisdom, of our heaven, from doing them any 
injury during the space of three days." Ten were then selected 
and followed the angel. They ascended by a steep path up a 
certain hill, and from thence up a mountain, on the summit 01 
which was situated the heaven of those angels, which had before 
appeared to them at a distance like an expanse in the clouds. 
The gates were opened for them ; and after they had passed the 
third gate, the introducing angel hastened to the prince of the 
society, or of that heaven, and announced their arrival. The 
prince said, " Take some of my attendants, and carry them word 
that their arrival is agreeable to me, and introduce them into 
my reception-room, and provide for each a separate apartment 
with a chamber, and appoint some of my attendants and servant* 
to wait upon them and attend to their wishes :" all which was 
done. On being introduced by the angel, they asked whether 
they might go and see the prince ; and the angel replied, " It is 
now morning, and it is not allowable before noon ; till that time 
every one is engaged in his particular duty and employment : but 
von are invited to dinner, and then you wilfsit at table with our 

21 



11 13 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

prince ; in the meantime I will introduce you into his palace, 
and show you its .splendid and magnificent contents." 

l. "When they were come to the palace, they first viewed 
it from without. It was large and spacious, built of porphyry, 
with a foundation of jasper ; and before the gates were six lofty 
columns of lapis lazuli; the roof was of plates of gold, the lofty 
windows, of the most transparent crystal, had frames also of gold. 
After viewing the outside they were' introduced within, and were 
conducted from one apartment to another ; in each of which they 
saw ornaments of inexpressible elegance and beauty ; and beneath 
the roof were sculptured decorations of inimitable workmanship. 
Near the walls were set silver tables overlaid with gold, on which 
were placed various implements made of precious stones, and of 
entire gems in heavenly forms, with several other things, such as 
no eye had ever seen on earth, and consequently such as could 
never be supposed to exist in heaven. While they were struck 
with astonishment at these magnificent sights, the angel said, 
" Be not surprised ; the things which you now behold are not the 
production and workmanship of any angelic hand, but are framed 
by the Builder of the universe, and presented as a gift to our prince ; 
wherefore the architectonic art is here in its essential perfection, 
and hence are derived all the rules of that art which are known and 
practised in the world." The angel further said, " You may pos- 
sibly conceive that such objects charm our eyes, and infatuate us 
by their grandeur, so that we consider them as constituting the joys 
of our heaven : this however is not the case ; for our affections 
not being set on such things, they are only contributory to the 
joys of our hearts ; and therefore, so far as we contemplate them 
as such, and as the workmanship of God, so far we contemplate 
in them the divine omnipotence and mercy." 

13. After this the angel said to them, "It is not yet noon: 
come with me into our prince's garden, which is near the palace." 
So they went with him ; and as they were entering, he said, 
u Behold here the most magnificent of all the gardens in our hea- 
venly society !" But they replied, "How! there is no garden here. 
We see only one tree, and on its branches and at its top as it were 
golden fruit and silver leaves, with their edges adorned with eme- 
ralds, and beneath the tree little children with their nurses." Here- 
upon the angel, with an inspired voice said, "Tkis tree is in the 
midst of the garden; some of us call it the tree of our heaven, 
and some, the tree of life. But advance nearer, and your eyes 
will be opened, and you will see the garden." They did so, and 
their eyes were opened, and they saw numerous trees bearing an 
abundance of fine flavored fruit, entwined about with young vines, 
whose tops with their fruit inclined towards the tree "of life in the 
midst. These trees were planted in a continuous series, which, 
proceeding from a point, and being continued into endless circles, 
or gyrations, as of a perpetual spiral, formed a perfect spiral of 
trees, wherein one species continually succeeded auother, accord- 
22 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 13, 14 

ing to the worth and excellence of their fruit. The circumgyra- 
tion began at a considerable distance from the tree in the midst, 
and the intervening space was radiant with a beam of light, 
which caused the trees in the circle to shine with a graduated 
splendor that was continued from the first to the last. The first 
trees were the most excellent of all, abounding with the choicest 
fruits, and were called paradisiacal trees, being such as are never 
seen in any country of the natural world, because none such ever 
grew or could grow there. These were succeeded by olive-trees, 
the olives by vines, these by sweet-scented shrubs, and these 
again by timber trees, whose wood was useful for building. At 
stated intervals in this spiral or gyre of trees, were interspersed 
seats, formed of the young shoots of the trees behind, brought 
forward and entwined in each other, while the fruit of the trees 
hanging over at the same time enriched and adorned them. At 
this perpetually winding circle of trees, there were passages which 
opened into flower-gardens, and from them into shrubberies, laid 
out into areas and beds. | At the sight of all these things the com- 
panions of the angels exclaimed, " JSehold heaven in form 1 wher- 
ever we turn our eyes we feel an influx of somewhat celestially- 
paradisiacal, which is not to be expressed." At this the angel 
rejoicing said, " All the gardens of our heaven are representative 
forms or types of heavenly beatitudes in their origins ; and be- 
cause the influx of these beatitudes elevated your minds, there- 
fore you exclaimed, ' Behold heaven in form !' but those who do 
not receive that influx, regard these paradisiacal gardens only as 
common woods or forests. AJ1 thoso who are under the influence 
of the love of use receive the influx ; but those who are under the 
ijfluence^of the love of glory not originating in use, do not re- 
ceive it.!iJ3Afterwards he explained to them what every "parti- 
cular thing in the garden represented and signified. 

14. While they were thus employed, there came a messenger 
from the prince, with an invitation to them to dine with him ; 
and at the same time two attendants brought garments of fine 
linen, and said, "Put on these; for no one is admitted to the 
prince's table unless he be clothed in the garments of heaven." 
bo they put them on, and accompanied their angel, and were 
shewn into a drawing-room belonging to the palace, where 
they waited for the prince ; and there the angel introduced them 
to the company and conversation of the grandees and nobles, 
who were also waiting for the prince's appearing. And lo ! in 
about an hour the doors were opened, and through one larger 
than the rest, on the western side, he was seen to enter in stately 
procession. His inferior counsellors went before him, after them 
his privy-counsellors, and next the chief officers belonging to the 
court ; in the middle of these was the prince ; after him followed 
courtiers of various ranks, and lastly the guards ; in all they 
amounted to a hundred and twenty. Then the angel, advancing 
oefore the ten strangers, who by their dress now appeared like 



4 16 CONJUGIAIi LOVE 

inmates of the place, approached with them towards the prince, 
and reverently introduced them to his notice ; and the PJ^pe, 
without stopping the procession, said to them, Come and dine 
wHh me" So they followed him into the dmiug-hall, where 
they saw a table magnificently set out, having in the middle a 
tall golden pyramid with a hundred branches in three rows, each 
branch having a small dish, or basket, containing a variety of 
sweetmeats and preserves, with other delicacies made of bread 
and wine ; and through the middle of the pyramid there issued 
as it were a bubbling fountain of nectareous wine, the stream oi 
which, falling from the summit of the pyramid separated into 
different channels and filled the cups. At the sides of this pyra- 
mid were various heavenly golden forms, on which were dishes 
and plates covered with all kinds of food. The heavenly forms 
supporting the dishes and plates were forms of art, derived iroin 
wisdom, such as cannot be devised by any human art, or ex- 
pressed by any human words : the dishes and plates were ol 
silver, on which were engraved forms similar to those that sup- 
ported them ; the cups were transparent gems. Such was the 
splendid furniture of the table. t . 

15. As regards the dress of the prince and his ministers, tne 
prince wore a long purple robe, set with silver stars wroughHn 
needle-work ; under this robe he had a tunic of bright silk of a 
blue orhyacinthnre color; this was open about the breast, where 
there appeared the forepart of a kind of zone or ribbon, with the 
ensiga of his society ; the badgje was an eagle sitting on her 
young at the top of a tree ; this was wrought in polished gold 
set with diamonds. The counsellors were dressed nearly after 
the same manner, but without the badge ; instead of which they 
wore sapphires curiously cut, hanging from their necks by a 
golden chain. The courtiers wore brownish cloaks, wrought 
with flowers encompassing young eagles ; their tunics were of 
an opal-colored silk, so were also their lower garments; thus were 
they dressed. 

16. The privy-counsellors, with those of inferior order , and 
the grandees stood around the table, and by command of the 
prince folded their hands, and at the same time in a low- voice 
said a prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord ; and after this, at a 
sign from the prince, they reclined on couches at the table. The 
prince then said to the ten strangers, " Do ye also recline with 
tne; behold, there are- your couches:" so the^ reclined; and the 
attendants, who were before sent by the prince to wait upon 
them, stood behind them. Then said the prince to them, "lake 
each of you a plate from Its supporting form, and afterwards a 
dish from the pyramid ;" and they did so ; and lot instantly new 
plates and dishes appeared in the place of those that were taken 
away ; and their cups were filled with wine that streamed from 
the fountain out of the tall pyramid : and they ate and drank. 

When dimmer was about half ended, the prince addressed the 
,. i i 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 16, 17 

ten new guests, and said, " I have been informed that yon were 
convened in the country which is immediately under this heaven, 
in order to declare your thoughts respecting the joys of heaven 
and eternal happiness thence derived, and that you professed 
different opinions each according to his peculiar ideas of delight 
originating in the bodily senses. But what are the delights of 
the bodily senses withou^ those of the soul ? The former are 
animated by the latterrf^The delights of the soul in themselves 
are imperceptible beat!tu9es; but, as they descend into the 
thoughts of the mind, and thence into the sensations of the body, 
they become more and more perceptible : in the thoughts of the 
mind they are perceived as satisfactions, in the sensations of the 
body ^ as delights, and in the body itself as pi easur^sT/ Eternal 
happiness is derived from the latter and the former "taken toge- 
ther ; but from the latter alone there results a happiness not 
eternal but temporary, which quickly comes to an end and passes 
away, and in some cases becomes unhappiness. You have now 
een that all your joys are also joys of heaven, and that these are 
far more excellent than you could have conceived ; yet such joys 
do not inwardly affect our minds. There are three things which 
enter by influx from the Lord as a one into our souls ; these three 
as a one, or this trine, are love^ wisdom, ,and use. Love and 
wisdom of themselves exist only ideally, being confined to the 
affections and thoughts of the mind ; but in use they exist really, 
because they are together in act and bodily employment ; and 
where they exist really, there they also subsist.. And as love and 
wisdom exist and subsist in use, it is by use we are affected; and 
use consists in a faithful, sincere, and diligent discharge of the 
duties of our calling. The love of use, and a consequent applica- 
tion to it, preserve the powers of the mind, and prevent their 
dispersion ; so that the mind is guarded against wandering and 
dissipation, and the imbibing of false lusts, which with their 
enchanting delusions flow in from the body and the world through 
the senses, whereby the truths of religion and morality, with ail 
that is good in either, become the sport of every wind ; but the 
application of the mind to use binds and unites those truths, and 
disposes the mind to become a form receptible of the wisdom 
thence derived ; and in this case it extirpates the idle sports and 
pastimes of falsity and vanity, banishing them from its centre 
towards the circumference. But you will hear more on this 
subject from the wise ones of our society, when I will send to 
you in the afternoon. So saying, the prince arose, and the new 
guests along with him, and bidding them farewell, he charged 
Sie conducting angel to lead them back to their ^ private apart- 
ments, and thereto show them every token of civility and respect, 
and also to invite some courteous and agreeable company to enter- 
tain them with conversation respecting the various joys of this 
society. 

17* The angel executed the prince's charge ; and when they 

25 



17 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

were turned to their private apartments, the company, invited 
from the city to inform them respecting the various joys of ^the 
society, arrived, and after the usual compliments entered into 
conversation with them as they walked along in a strain at once 
entertaining and elegant But the conducting angel said, "These 
ten men were invited into this heaven to see its joys, and to 
receive thereby a new idea concerning eternal happiness. Ac- 
quaint us therefore with some of its joys which affect the bodily 
senses ; and afterwards, some wise ones will arrive, who will 
acquaint us with what renders those joys satisfactory and happy. 
Then the company who were invited from the city related the 
following particulars : " 1. There are here days of ^festivity 
appointed by the prince, that the mind, by due relaxation, may 
recover from the weariness which an emulative desire may occa- 
sion in particular cases. On such days we have concerts of music 
and singing in the public places, and out of the city are exhibited 
games and shows: in the public places at such times are raised 
orchestras surrounded with balusters formed of vines wreathed 
together, from which hang bunches of ripe grapes ; within these 
balusters in three rows, one above another, sit the ^musicians, 
with their wind and stringed instruments of various tones, 
both high and low, loud and soft ; and near them are singers 
of both sexes who entertain the citizens with the sweetest 
music and singing, both in concert and solo, varied at times as 
to its particular kind ; these concerts continue on those days of 
festivity from morning till noon, and afterwards till evening. 
2. Moreover, every morning from the houses around the public 
places we hear the sweetest songs of virgins and young girls, 
which resound though the whole city. It is an affection of spi- 
ritual love, which is sung every morning ; that is, it is rendered 
sonorous by modifications of the voice in singing, or by modula- 
tions. The affection in the song is perceived as the real affection, 
flowing into the minds of the hearers, and exciting them to a 
correspondence with it : such is the nature of heavenly singing. 
The virgin-singers say, that the sound of their song is as it were 
self-inspired and self-animated from within, and exalted with 
delight according to the reception it meets with from the hearers. 
When this is ended, the windows of the houses around the pub- 
lic places, and likewise of those in the streets, are shut, and so 
also are the doors ; and then the whole city is silent, and no 
noise heard in any part of it, nor is any person seen loitering 
ia the streets, but all are intent on their work and the duties of 
their calling. 3. At noon, however, the doors are opened, and 
in the afternoon also the windows in some houses, and boys and 
girls are seen playing in the streets, while their masters and mis- 
tresses sit in the porches of their houses, watching over them, 
and keeping them in order. 4, At the extreme parts of the city 
there are various sports of boys and young men, as running, 
hand- ball, tennis, &c. : there are besides trials of skill among the 



ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 17, 18 

boys, in order to discover the readiness of their wit in speaking, 
acting, and perceiving; and such as excel receive some leaves of 
laurel as a reward ; not to mention other things of a like nature, 
designed to call forth and exercise the latent talents of the young 
people. 5. Moreover out of the city are exhibited stage-enter- 
tainments, in which the actors represent the various graces and 
virtues of moral life, among whom are inferior characters for the 
sake of relatives." And one of the ten asked, " How for the sake 
of relatives?" And they replied, "No virtue with its graces 
and beauties, can be suitably represented except by means of 
relatives, in which are comprised and represented all its graces 
and beauties, from the greatest to the least; and the inferior 
characters represent the least, even till they become extinct ; 
but it is provided by law, that nothing of the opposite, which is 
indecorous and dishonorable, should be exhibited, except figura- 
tively, and as it were remotely. The reason of which provision 
is, because nothing that is honorable and good in any virtue can 
by successive progressions pass over to what is dishonorable and 
evil : it only proceeds to its least, when it perishes ; and when 
that is the case, the opposite commences ; wherefore heaven, 
where all things are honorable and good, has nothing in common 
with hell, where all things are dishonorable and evil." 

18. During this conversation, a servant came in and brought 
word, that the eight wise ones, invited by the prince's order, 
were arrived, and wished to be admitted ; whereupon the angel 
went out to receive and introduce them : and presently the wise 
ones, after the customary ceremonies of introduction, began to 
converse with them on the beginnings and increments of wisdom, 
with which they intermixed various remarks respecting its pro- 
gression, shewing, that with the angels it never ceases or comes 
to a period, but advances and increases to eternity. Hereupon 
the attendant angel said to them, " Our prince at table while 
talking with these strangers respecting the seat or abode of wis- 
dom, showed that it consists in use : if agreeable to you, be 
pleased to acquaint them further on the same subject." They 
therefore said, " Man, at his first creation, was endued with 
wisdom and its love, not for the sake of himself, but that he 
might communicate it to others from himself. Hence it is a 
maxim inscribed on the wisdom of the wise, that no one is wise 
for himself alone, or lives for himself, but for others at the same 
time : this is the origin of society, which otherwise could not 
exist. To live for others is to perform uses. Uses are the 
oonds of society, which are as many in number as there are 
good uses ; and the number of uses is infinite. There are spi- 
ritual uses, such as regard love to God and love towards our 
neighbour ; there are moral and civil uses, such as regard the love 
of the society and state to which a man belongs, and of his 
fellow-citizens among whom he lives ; there are natural uses, 
6 



18 20 CONJTTGTAL LOVE 

which regard the love of the world and its necessities ; and there 
are corporeal uses, such as regard the love of self-preservation 
with a view to superior uses. All these uses are inscribed on 
man, and follow in order one after another ; and when they are 
together, one is in the other. Those who are in the first uses, 
w&ch are spiritual, are in all the succeeding ones, and such per- 
sons are wise; but those who are not in the first, and yet are in 
the second, and thereby tn the succeeding ones, are not so highly 
principled in wisdom, but only appear to be so by virtue of an 
external morality and civility ; those who are neither in the first 
nor second, but only in the third and fourth, have not the least 
pretensions to wisdom; for they are satans, loving only the 
world and themselves for the sake of the world ; but those who 
are only in the fourth, are least wise of all ; for they are devils, 
because they live to themselves alone, and only to others for the 
sake of themselves. Moreover, every love has its particular 
delight ; for It is by delight that love is kept alive ; and the de- 
light of the love of uses is a heavenly delight, which enters into 
succeeding delights in their order, and according to the order 
of succession, exalts them and makes them eternal." After this 
they enumerated the heavenly delights proceeding from the love 
of uses, and said, that they are a thousand times ten thousand ; 
and that all who enter heaven enter into those delights. "With 
further wise conversation on the love of use, they passed the 
day with them until evening. 

19. Towards evening there came a messenger clothed in linen 
to the ten strangers who attended the angel, and invited them 
to a marriage-ceremony which was to be celebrated the next day, 
and the strangers were much rejoiced to think that they were 
also to be present at a marriage-ceremony in heaven. After 
this they were conducted to the house of one of the counsellors, 
and supped with him ; and after supper they returned to the 
palace, and each retired to his own chamber, where they slept 
till morning. When they awoke, they heard the singing of the 
virgins and young girls from the houses around the public places 
of resort, which we mentioned above. Hwy sung thalinorning 
the affection oj^joiugialjb^a ; the sweetness of which so affected 
^^^ sensibly a blessed 
serenity instilled into their joys, which at the some time exalted 
and renewed them. At the hour appointed the angel said, 
" Make yourselves ready, and put on the heavenly garments 
which our prince sent you ;" and they did so, arid lo! the gar- 
ments were resplendent as with a flaming light ; and on their 
asking the angel, " Whence is this?" he replied, u Because yon 
are going to a marriage-ceremony ; and wnen that is the case, 
our garments always assume a shining appearance, and become 
marriage-garments." 

20. After this the angel conducted them to the house where 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS* 20, 21 

the nuptials were to be celebrated, and the porter opened the 
door; and presently being admitted within the house, they were 
received and welcomed by an angel sent from the bridegroom, 
and were introduced and shewn to the seats intended for them : 
and soon after they were invited into an ante-chamber, in the 
middle of which they saw a table, and on it a magnificent can- 
dlestick with seven branches and sconces of gold : against the 
walls there were hung silver lamps, which being lighted made the 
atmosphere appear of a golden hue: and they observed on each 
side of the candlestick two tables, on which were set loaves in 
three rows ; there were tables also at the four corners of the 
room, on which were placed crystal cups. While they were 
viewing these things, lo ! a door opened from a closet near the 
marriage-chamber, and six virgins came out, and after them the 
bridegroom and the bride, holding each other by the hand, and 
advancing towards a seat placed opposite to the candlestick, on 
which thejr seated themselves, the bridegroom on the left hand, 
and the bride on the right, while the six virgins stood by the 
seat near the bride. The bridegroom was dressed in a robe of 
bright^ purple, and a tunic of fine shining linen, with an ephod, 
on which was a golden plate set round with diamonds, and ou 
the plate was engraved a young eagle, the marriage-ensign of 
that heavenly society.; on Ms head he wore a mitre: the bride 
was dressed in a scarlet mantle, under which was a gown, orna- 
mented with fine needle- work, that reached from her neck to her 
feet, and beneath her bosom, she wore a golden girdle, and on 
her head a golden crown set with rubies. When they were thus 
seated, the bridegroom turning himself towards the bride, put 
a golden ring on her finger ; he then took bracelets and a pearl 
necklace, ana clasped the bracelets about her wrists, and the 
necklace about her neck, and said, " Accept these pledges /" and 
as she accepted them he kissed her, aad said, " Now thou art 
mine ;" and he called her his wife. On this all the company 
cried out, "May the divine blessing be upon you I 5 ' These 
words were first pronounced by each separately, and afterwards 
by all together. They were pronounced also in turn by a certain 
person sent from the prince as his representative ; and at that 
instant the ante-chamber was filled with an aromatic smoke, 
which was a token of blessing from heaven. Then the servants 
in waiting took loaves from the two tables near the candlestick, 
and cups, now filled with wine, from the tables at the corners of 
the room, and gave to each of the guests his own loaf and his 
own cup, and they ate and drank. After this the husband and 
his wife arose, and the six virgins attended them with the silver 
lamps, now lighted, in their hands to the threshold ; and the 
married pair entered their chamber ; and the door was shut, 

21. Afterwards the conducting angel talked with the guesta 
about liis ten companions, acquainting them how he was com- 

29 



21 COKJTJGIAL LOVE 

missioned to introduce them, and shew them the magnificent 
things contained in the prince's palace, and other wonderful 
sights ; and how they had dined at table with him, and after- 
wards had conversed with the wise ones of the society; and he 
said, " May I be permitted to introduce them also to you, in 
order that they may enjoy the pleasure of your conversation ?" 
So he introduced them, and they entered into discourse together. 
Then a certain wise personage, one of the marriage-guests, said, 
u Do you understand the meaning of what you have seen ?" 
They replied, "But little;" and then they asked him, "Why 
was the bridegroom, who is now a husband, dressed in that par- 
ticular manner ?" He answered, " Because the bridegroom, now 
a husband, represented the Lord, and the bride, who is now a 
wife, represented the church ; for marriages in heaven represent 
the marriage <Jf the Lorcl with the church. This is the reason 
why he wore a mitre on his head, and was dressed in a robe, a 
tunic, and an ephod, like Aaron ; and why the bride had a crown 
on her head, and wore a mantle like a queen ; but to-morrow 
they will be dressed differently, because this representation lasts 
no longer than to-day." They further asked, " Since he repre- 
sented the Lord, and she the church, why did she sit at his right 
hand?" The wise one replied, "Because there are two things 
which constitute the marriage of the Lord with the church love 
and wisdom ; t^Loi;d isjoy^andjtae church is wisdom ; and 
wisdom is at the right hand ofTove; for every member of the 
church is wise as of himself, and in proportion as he is wise he 
receives love from the Lord. The right hand also signifies 
power; and love has power by means of wisdom; but, as we 
have just observed, after the marriage-ceremony the representa- 
tion is changed ; for. then the husband represents wisdom, and 
t|ie wife the love of his wisdom. This love however is not pri- 
mary, but secondary love ; being derived from the Lord to the 
wife through the wisdom of the husband : the love of the Lord, 
which is the primary love, is the husband's love of being wise; 
therefore after marriage, both together, the husband and his wife, 
represent the church. They asked again, " Why did not you 
men stand by the bridegroom, now the husband, as the six 
virgins stood by the bride, now the wife?" The wise one an- 
swered, " Because we to-day are numbered among the virgins ; 
and the number six signifies all and what is complete." But 
they said, " Explain your meaning." He replied, " Virgins 
signify the church ; and the church consists of both sexes : there- 
fore also we, with respect to the church, are virgins. That thia 
is the case, is evident from these words in the Revelation ; 
4 These are those who were not defiled with women / for they are 
VJJEMHNS : and they follow the JLamb whithersoever he goethj 
chap. xiv. 4. And as virgins signify the church, therefore the 
Lord likened it to ten VIRGINS invited to a marriage, Mat. xxv, 
30 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 22, 23 

And as Israel, Zion, and Jerusalem, signify the church, therefore 
mention is so often made in the Word, of the VIRGIN AND 

DAUGHTER OF ISRAEL, OF ZlON, AND OF JEEUSALEM. The Lord 

also describes his marriage with the church in these words : 

4 UPON THY BIGHT HAND DID STAND THE QUEEN in gold of OphlT : 

her clothing is of wrought gold : she shall "be "brought unto the 
king in RAIMENT OF NEEDLEWORK : THE VIRGINS her companions 
THAT FOLLOW HER shall enter into the Jcing*s palace? Psalm xlv. 
9 16." Lastly they asked, "Is it not expedient that a priest 
be present and minister at the marriage-ceremony ?" The wise 
one answered, "This is expedient on the earth, but not in the 
lieavens, by reason of the representation of the Lord himself 
and the church. On the earth they are not aware of this ; but 
even with us a priest ministers in whatever relates to betroth- 
ings, or marriage contracts, and hears, receives, confirms, and 
consecrates the consent of the parties. Consent is the essential 
of marriage; all succeeding ceremonies are its formalities." + 

22. After this the conducting angel went to the six virgins, 
and gave them an account of his companions, and requested 
that they would vouchsafe to join company with them. Accord- 
ingly they came ; but when they drew near, they suddenly 
retired, and went into the ladies' apartment to the virgins their 
companions. On seeing this, the conducting angel followed 
them, and asked why they retired so suddenly without entering 
into conversation? They replied. "We cannot approach:" and 
he said, " Why not?" They answered, " We do not know; but 
we perceived something which repelled us and drove us back 
again. We hope they will excuse us." The angel then returned 
to his companions, and told them what the virgins had said, and 
added, "I conjecture that your love of the sex is not chaste!*' 
In heaven we love virgins for their beauty and the elegance of 
their manners ; and we love them intensely, but chastely." 
Hereupon his companions smiled and said, "You conjecture 
right: who can behold such beauties near and not feel some 
excitement?" **" 

23. After much entertaining conversation the marriage-guests 
departed, and also the ten strangers with their attendant angel ; 
and the evening being far advanced, they retired to rest. In the 
morning they heard a proclamation, TO-DAY is THE SABBATH. 
They then arose and asked the angel what it meant : he replied, 
" It is for the worship of God, which returns at stated periods, 
and is proclaimed by the priests. The worship is performed in 
our temples and lasts about two hours ; wherefore if it please 
you, come along with me, and I will introduce you." So they 
made themselves ready, and attended the angel, and entered the 
temple. It was a large building capable of containing abou 
three thousand persons, of a semicircular form, with benches or 
seats carried round in a continued sweep according to the figure 

81 



23 26 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

of the temple ; the hinder ones being more elevated than tnose 
in front. The pulpit in front of the seats was drawn a little 
from the centre ; the door was behind the pulpit on the left 
hand. The ten strangers entered with their conducting^ angel, 
who pointed out to them the places where they were to sit; tell- 
ing them, " Every one that enters the temple knows his own 
place by a kind of innate perception ; nor can he sit in any place 
but his own : in case he takes another place, he neither hears 
nor perceives anything, and he also disturbs the order; the con- 
sequence of which is, that the priest is not inspired." 
""" 24. When the congregation had assembled, the priest as- 
cended the pulpit, and preached a sermon full of the spirit of 
wisdom. The discourse was concerning the sanctity of the Holj 
Scriptures, and the conjunction of the Lord with both worlds, 
the spiritual and the natural, by means thereof. In tfce illus- 
tration in which he then was, he fully proved, that that holy 
book was dictated by Jehovah the Lord, and that consequently 
He is in it, so as to be the wisdom it contains ; but that the 
wisdom which is Himself therein, lies concealed under the sense 
of the letter, and is opened only to those who are in the truths 
of doctrine, and at the same time in goodness of life, and thus 
who are in the Lord, and the Lord in them. To his discourse 
he added a votive prayer and descended. As the audience were 
going out, the angel requested the priest to speak a few words 
of peace with his ten companions ; so he came to them, and they 
conversed together for about half an hour. He discoursed con- 
cerning the divine trinity that it is in Jesus Christ, in whom 
all the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily, according to the 
declaration of the apostle Paul ; and afterwards concerning the 
union of charity and faith ; but he said, " the union of charity 
jind truth ;" because faith is truth. 

25. After expressing their thanks they returned home ; and 
then the angel said to them, " This is the third day since you 
came into the society of this heaven, and you were prepared by 
the Lord to stay here three days ; it is time therefore that we 
separate; put off therefore the garments sent you by the prince, 
and put on your own." When they had done so, they were in- 
spired with a desire to be gone ; so they departed and descended, 
the angel attending them to the place of assembly ; and there 
they gave thanks to the Lord for vouchsafing to bless them with 
knowledge, and thereby with intelligence, concerning heavenly 
joys and eternal happiness. 

26. "I again solemnly declare, that these things were done 
and said as they are related ; the former in the world of spirits, 
which is intermediate between heaven and hell, and the latter 
in the society of heaven to which the angel with the trumpet 
and the conductor belonged. "Who in the Christian world would 
have known anything concerning heaven, and the joys and hap- 

32 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 26 

piness there experienced, the knowledge of which is the know- 
ledge of salvation, unless it had pleased the Lord to open to 
some person the sight of his spirit, in order to shew and teach 
them ? That similar things exist in the spiritual world is very 
manifest from what were seen and heard by the apostle John, 
as described in the Revelation ; as that he saw the Son of Man 
in the midst of seven candlesticks ; also a tabernacle, temple, 
ark, and altar in heaven ; a book sealed with seven seals ; the 
book opened, and horses going forth thence ; four animals around 
the throne; twelve thousand chosen out of ev^ry tribe; locusts 
ascending out of the bottomless pit; a dragon, and his combat 
with Michael ; a woman bringing forth a male child, and flying 
into a wilderness on account of the dragon; two beasts, one 
ascending out of the sea, the other out of the earth ; a woman. 
sitting upon a scarlet beast ; the dragon cast out into a lake of 
fire and brimstone ; a white horse and a great supper ; a new 
heaven and a i\ew earth, and the holy Jerusalem descending 
described as to its gates, wall, and foundation ; also a river of 
the water of life, and trees of life bearing fruits every month ; 
besides several other particulars ; all which things were seen by 
John, while as to his spirit he was in the spiritual world and in 
heaven : not to mention the things seen by the apostles after the 
Lord's resurrection ; and what were afterwards seen and heard 
by Peter, Acts xi. ; also by Paul ; moreover by the prophets ; as 
by EzEKiEL,'who saw four animals which were cherubs, chap i. 
and chap x. ; a new temple and a new earth, and an angel 
measuring them, chap. xl. xlviii. ; and was led away to Jeru- 
salem, and saw there abominations : and also into Chaldea into 
captivity, chap. viii. and chap. xi. The case was similar with 
ZECHAKIAH, who saw a man riding among myrtles ; also four 
horns, chap. i. 8, and following verses ; and afterwards a man 
with a measuring-line in his hand, chap. ii. 1, and following 
verses ; likewise a candlestick and two olive trees, chap. iv. 2, 
and following verses ; also a flying roll and an eghah^cji^p..^., 
1, 6; also four chariots going forth between two mountains, and 
horses, chap. vi. 1, and following verses. So likewise with 
DANIEL, who saw four beasts coming up out of the sea, chap. vii. 
1, and following verses ; also combats of a ram and he-goat, 
chap. viii. 1, and following verses ; who also saw the angel 
Gabriel, and had much discourse with him, chap. ix. : the youth 
of Elisha saw chariots and horses of fire round about Elisha, and 
saw them, when his eyes were opened, 2 Kings vi. 15, and fol- 
lowing verses. From these and several other instances in the 
Word, it is evident, that the things which exist in the spiritual 
world, appeared to many both before and after the Lord's coin- 
ing : is it any wonder then, that the same things should now 
also appear when the church is commencing, or when the New 4 
Jerusalem is coming down from the Lord out of heaven ?" 

3 33 



8T, 28 CONJUGIAL LOVE 



ON MARRIAGES IN HEAVEN. 

27. THAT there are marriages in heaven cannot be admitted 
as an article of faith by those who imagine that a inan^ after 
death is a soul or spirit, and who conceive of a soul or spirit as 
of a rarefied ether or vapor ; who imagine also, that a man 
will not live as a man till after the day of the last judgment; 
and in general who know nothing respecting the spiritual world, 
in which angels and spirits dwell, consequently in which there 
are heavens and hells : and as that world has been heretofore 
unknown, and mankind have been in total ignorance that the 
angels of heaven are men, in a perfect form, and in like manner 
infernal spirits, but in an imperfect form, therefore it was im- 
possible for anything to be revealed concerning marriages in that 
world ; for if it had it would have been objected, "How can a 
soul be joined with a soul, or a vapor with a vapor, as one mar- 
ried partner with another here on earth ?" not to mention other 
similar objections, which, the instant they were made, would 
take away and dissipate all faith respecting marriages in another 
life. But now, since several particulars have been revealed con- 
cerning that world, and a description Has also been given of its 
nature and quality, in the treatise on HEAVEN AND HELL, and 
also in the APOCALYPSE REVEALED, the assertion, that marriages 
take place in that world, may be so far confirmed as even to 
convince the reason by the following propositions : I. A man 
(homo) lives a man after death. II. In this case a male is a 
male, and a female a female. III. J/Svery one's peculiar love 
remains with him after death. IV. The love of the sew espe- 
cially remains ; and with those who go to heaven, which is the 
vase with all who become spiritual here on earth, conjugial love 
remains. V. These things fully confirmed by ocular demon- 
stration. VI. Consequently that there are marriages in the 
heavens. VII. Spiritual nuptials are to l>e understood by the 
Lord's words, where Tie says, that after the resurrection they are 
not given in marriage. We will now give ; an explanation of 
these propositions in their order. 

28. I. A MAN LIVES A MAN AFTEK DEATH. That a man lives 
a man after death has been heretofore unknown in the world, foi 
the reasons just now mentioned ; and, what is surprising, it has 
been unknown even in the Christian world, where they have the 
Word, and illustration thence concerning eternal life, and where 
the Lord himself teaches, That all the dead rise again; and that 
God is not the God of the dead lut of the living, Matt xxii. 31, 
&2. Luke xx. 37, 38. Moreover, a man, as to the affections and 
thoughts of his mind, is in the midst of angels and spirits, and 
is so consociated with them that were he to be separated from 
them he would instantly die. It is still more surprising that this 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 28,. 25: 

is unknown, when yet every man that has departed this life since 
the beginning of creation, after his decease has come and doe* 
still corne to his own, or, as it is said in the Word, has been 
gathered and is gathered to his own ; besides every one has a 
common perception, which is the same thing as the influx of 
heaven into the interiors of his mind, by virtue of which he 
inwardly perceives truths, and as it were "sees them, and espe- 
cially this truth, that he lives a man after death ; a happy man 
if he has lived well, and an unhappy one if he has lived ill. For 
who does not think thus, while he elevates his mind in any degree 
above the body, and above the thought which is nearest to the 
senses ; as is the case when he is interiorly engaged in divine 
worship, and when he lies on his death-bed expecting his disso- 
lution ; also when he hears of those who are deceased, and their 
lot? I have related a thousand particulars respecting departed 
spirits, informing certain persons that are now alive concerning 
the state of their deceased brethren, their married partners, and 
their friends. I have written also concerning the state of the 
English, the Dutch, the Papists, the Jews, the Uentiles, and like- 
wise concerning the state of Luther, Calvin, and Melancthon ; 
and hitherto I never heard any one object, " How can such be 
their lot, when they are not yet risen from their tombs, the last 
judgement not being yet accomplished 3 Are they not in the 
meantime mere vaporous and unsubstantial souls residing, in 
some place of confinement (in quodam pu seu ubfyt" Such ob- 
jections I have never yet heard from any quarter ; wnence I have 
been led to conclude, that every one perceives in himself that he 
lives a man after death. Who that has loved his married partner 
and his children when they are dying or are dead, will not say 
within himself (if his thought be elevated above the sensual prin- 
ciples of the body) that they are in the hand of God, and that he 
shall see them again after his own death, and again be joined 
with them in a life of love and joy ? 

29. Who, that is willing, cannot see from reason, that a man 
after death is not a mere vapor, of which no idea can be formed 
but as of a breath of wind, or of air and ether, and that such vapor 
constitutes or contains in it the human soul, which desires and 
expects conjunction with its body, in order that it may enjoy the 
bodily senses and their delights, as previously in the world 1 
We cannot see, that if this were the case with a' man after death, 
his state would be more deplorable than that of fishes, birds, 
and terrestrial animals, whose souls are not alive, and conse- 
quently are not in such anxiety of desire and expectation t Sup- 
posing a man after death to be such a vapor, and thus a breath 
of wind, he would either fly about in the universe, or according 
to certain traditions, would be reserved in a place of confine- 
ment, or in the limbo of the ancient fathers, until the last 
judgement. Who cannot hence from reason conclude, that those 

* 35 



29 81 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

who have lived since the beginning of creation, which is com 
pnted to be about six thousand years ago, must be still in a simila* 
anxious state, and progressively more anxious, because all expec- 
tation arising from desire produces anxiety, and being continued 
from time to time increases it ; consequently, that they must 
.still be either floating about in the universe, or be kept shut up 
in confinement, and thereby in extreme misery ; and that must 
be the case with Adam and his wife, with Abraham, Isaac, and 
Jacob, and with all who have lived since that time? All this 
being supposed true, it must needs follow, that nothing would be 
more deplorable than to be born a man. But tho reverse of this 
is provided by the Lord, who is Jehovah from eternity and the 
Creator of the universe; for the state of the man that conjoins 
himself with him by a life according to his precepts, becomes 
more blessed and happy after death than before it in the world ; 
and it is more blessed . and happy from this circumstance, that 
1Jfc8JMaJ&^ a sp,|iitEaLm,au. is sensible of and, 

perceives spiriSSa^i^Vwhich is a thousand times superior to t 

Jjitat^Jell^""* ""/'".. 

30. That angels and spirits are men, may plainly appear irom 

those seen by Abraham, Gideon, Daniel, and the prophets, and 
especially by John when he wrote the Revelation, and also by 
the women in the Lord's sepulchre, yea, from the Lord himself 
as seen by the disciples after his resurrection. The reason of their 
being seen was, because the eyes of the spirits of those who saw 
them were opened ; and when the eyes of the spirit are opened, 
angels appear in their proper form, which is the human ; but 
when the eyes of the spirit are closed, that is, when they are 
veiled by the vision of the bodily eyes, which derive all their 
impressions from the material world, then they do not appear. 
81. It is however to be observed, that a man after death is not 
a natural, but a spiritual man : nevertheless he still appears in 
all respects like himself; and so much so, that he knows not 
but that he is still an the natural world : for he has a similar 
body, countenance, speech, and senses ; for he has a similar affec- 
tion and thought, or will and understanding. He is indeed 
actually not similar, because he is a spiritual, and consequently 
an interior man ; but the difference does not appear to him, be- 
cause he cannot compare his spiritual state with his former natural 
itate, having put off the latter, and being in the former ; therefore 
I have often heard such persons say, that they know not but that 
they are in the former world, with this difference, however, that 
they no longer see those whom they had left in that world ; but 
that they see those who had departed out of it, or were deceased. 
The reason why they now see the latter and not the former, is, 
because they are no longer natural men, but spiritual or sub- 
stantial ; and a spiritual or substantial man sees a spiritual Of 
substantial man, as a natural or material man sees a natural or 
36 



AKD ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 31, 32 

material man, but not vice versa, on account of the difference 
between what is substantial and what is material, which is like 
the difference between what is prior and what is posterior; and 
what is prior, being in itself purer, cannot appear to what is 
posterior, which in itself is grosser ; nor can what is posterior, 
being grosser, appear to what is prior, which in itself is purer ; 
consequently an angel cannot appear to a man of this world, nor 
a man of this world to an angel. The reason why a man after 
death is a spiritual or substantial man, is, because this spiritual 
or substantial man lay inwardly concealed in the natural or 
material man ; which natural or material man was to it as a 
covering, or as a skin about to be cast off ; and when the cover- 
-ing or skin is cast off, the spiritual or substantial man comes 
forth, a purer, interior, and more perfect roan. That the spi- 
ritual man is still a perfect man, notwithstanding his being invi- 
sible to the natural man, is evident from the Lord's being seen 
by the apostles after his resurrection, when he appeared, and 
presently he did not appear ; and yet he was a man like to him- 
self both when seen and when not seen : it is also said, that 
when they saw him, their eyes were opened. 

32. II. IlST THIS CASE A MALE IS A MALE, AND A FEMALE A 

FEMALE. Since a man (homo) lives a man after death, and man 
is male and female, and there is such a distinction between the 
male principle and the female principle, that the one cannot be 
changed into the other, it follows, that after death the male lives 
a male, and the female a female, each being a spiritual man. 
It is said that the male principle cannot be changed into the 
female principle, nor the female into the male, and that there- 
fore after death the male is a male, and the female a female ; but 
as it is not known in what the masculine principle essentially 
consists, and in what the feminine, it may be expedient briefly 
to explain it The essential distinction between the two is this : 
in the masculine principle, love is inmost, and its covering is wis- 
dom ; or, what is the same, the masculine principle is love covered 
(or veiled) by wisdom ; whereas in the feminine principle, the wis- 
dom of the male is inmost, and its covering is love thence derived; 
but this latter love is feminine, and is given by the Lord to the wife 
through the wisdom of the husband ; whereas the former love is 
masculine, which is the love of growing wise, and is given by 
the Lord to the husband according to the reception of wisdom. 
It is from this circumstance, that the male is the wisdom of love, 
and the female is the love of that wisdom ; therefore from crea- 
tion there is implanted in each a love of conjunction so as to 
become a one ; but on this subject more will be said in the fol- 
lowing pages. That the femaie principle is derived from the 
male, or that the woman was taken out of the man, is evident 
from these words in Genesis : Jehovah God took out one of the 
man's ribs, and closed uj) the flesh in theplaoe thereof; and he 



32 34 OONJUGIIX IOVE 

luildedtherib, which he hadtaTcen onto/the man, into a woman, 
and he brought her to the man; and the man ^Thisu bone 
of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; hence she shall le called ve, 
because she was taken out of man, chap. 11. 21-23 : the signifi- 
cation of a rib and of flesh will be shewn elsewhere. 

33 From this primitive formation it follows, that by^ birth 
the character of the male is intellectual, and that the female 
character partakes more of the will principle; or, what amounts 
to the same, that the male is born into the affection of knowing, 
understanding, and growing wise, and the female into the love 01 
conjoining herself with that affection in the male. And as the 
interiors form the exteriors to their own likeness, and the mas- 
culine form is the form of intellect, and the feminine is the form 
of the love of that intellect, therefore the male and t the female 
differ as to the features of the face, the tone of the voice, and the 
form of the body ; the male having harder features, a harsher 
tone of voice, a stronger body, and also a bearded chin, and in 
general a form less beautiful than that of the female ; they diiier 
also in their gestures and manners ; in a word, they are not 
exactly similar in a single respect ; but^ still, in every particular 
of each, there is a tendency to conjunction; yea, the male prin- 
ciple in the male, is male in every part of his body, even the 
most minute, and also in every idea of his thought, and^ every 
spark of his affection ; the same is true of the female principle 
in the female; and since of consequence the one cannot^ be 
changed into the other, it follows, that after death a male is a 
male, and a female a female. 

/ 34. III. EVERY ONE'S PECULIAR LOVE REMAINS WITH HIM 
AFTER DEATH. Man knows that there is such a thing as love ; 
but he does not know what love is. He knows that there is such 
a thing from common discourse ; as when it is said, that such a 
one loves me, that a king loves his subjects, and subjects love 
their king; that a husband loves his wife, and a mother her 
children, and vice versa; also when it is said, that any one loves 
his country, his fellow citizens, and his neighbour ; in like man- 
ner of things abstracted from persons ; as when it is said that a 
man loves this or that. But although the term love is thus uni* 
versally applied in conversation, still there is scarcely any one 
that knows what love is : even while meditating on the subject, 
as he is not then able to form any distinct idea concerning it, 
and thus not to fix it as present in the light of the understand- 
ing, because of its having relation not to light but to heat, he 
either denies its reality, or he calls it merely an influent effect 
arising from the sight, the hearing, and the conversation, and 
thus accounts for the motions to which it gives birth; not being 
at all aware, that love is his very life, not only the common life 
of his whole body and of all his thoughts, but also the life of all 
meir particulars* A wise man may perceive this trona the con 
38 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 34 37 

sideration, that if the affection of love be removed, he Is inca- 
pable both of thinking and acting ; for in proportion as that 
affection grows cold, do not thought, speech, and action grow 
cold also ? and in proportion as that affection grows warm, do not 
they also grow warm in the same degree ? Love therefore is the 
heat of the life of man (hominis\ or his vital heat. The heat of 
the blood, and also its redness, ar<j from this source alone. The 
fire of the angelic sun, which is pure love, produces this effect 

35. That every one has his own peculiar love, or a love dis- 
tinct from that of another ; that is, that no two men have exactly 
the same love, may appear from the infinite variety of human 
countenances, Jthe countenance being a type of the love ; for it. 
is^well known that the countenance is changed and varied accord- 
ingjo the affection of -love ; a man's desires also, which are of 
love, and likewise his joys and sorrows, are manifested in the 
countenance. From this consideration it is evident, that every 
man is his own peculiar love ; yea, that he is the form of his 
love. It is however to be observed, that the interior man, which 
is the same with his spirit which lives after death, is the form of 
his love, and not so me exterior man which lives in this world, 
because the latter has learnt from infancy to conceal the desires 
of his love ; yea, to make a pretence and show of desires which 
are different from his own. 

36. The reason why every one's peculiar love remains with 
him after death, is, because, as was said just above, n. 34, love is 
a man's (hominis) life ; and hence it is the man himself. A man 
also is his own peculiar thought, thus his own peculiar intelli- 
gence and wisdom ; but these make a one with his love ; for a 
man thinks from this love and according to it ; yea, if he be in 
freedom, ho speaks and acts in like manner ; from which it 
may appear, that love is the esse or essence of a man's life, and 
that thought is the existere or existence of his life thence de- 
rived ; therefore speech and action, which are said to flow from 
the thought, do not flow from the thought, but from the love 
through the thought. From much experience I have learned 
that a man after death is not his own peculiar thought, but that 
he ^hisj^Kfi^peculiar a f%^l 011 ^i^&yiMl^ilwxught ; or that 
EelsTiiiS own pecullalove anT3erivative intelligence ; also that 
a man after death puts off everything which does not agree with 
his love ; yea, that he successively puts on the countenance, the 
tone of voice, the speech, the gestures, and the manners of the 
love proper to his life : hence it is, that the whole heaven is 
arranged in order according to all the varieties of the affections 
of the love of good, and the whole hell according to all the affec- 
tions of the love of evil. 

ST. IV. THE LOVE OF THE SEX ESPECIALLY KEMAINS ; AND 

WITH THOSE WHO GO TO HEAVEN", WHICH IS THE CASE WITH ALL 
WHO BECOME SPIRITUAL HEKE OJS BA&XH* OOtf JUGHAL LOVE BO- 



37 89 CONJUGIAL LOTE 



. The reason why the love of the sex remains with man 
(homo) after death, is, because after death a male is a male and 
a female a female ; and the male principle in the male is male 
(or masculine) in the whole and in every part thereof; and so is 
the female principle in the, female; and there is a tendency to 
conjunction in all their parts, even the most singular; and as 
this conjunctive tendency was implanted from creation, and 
thence perpetually influences, it follows, that the one desires and 
seeks conjunction with the other. Love, considered itself, ^ia 
a desire and consequent tendency to conjunction ; and conjugial 
love to conjunction into a one; for the male-man and the female- 
man were so created, that from two they may become as it were 
one man, or one flesh. ; and when they become a one, then, taken 
together they are a man (homo) in his fulness ; but without such 
conjunction, they are two, and each is a divided or half-man. 
Now as the above conjunctive tendency lies concealed in the in- 
most of every part of the male, and of every part of the female, 
and the same is true of the faculty and desire to be conjoined 
together into a one, it follows, that the mutual and reciprocal 
love of the sex remains with men (homines) after death. 

38. We speak distinctively of the love of the sex and of con- 
jugial love, because the one .differs from the other. 3^ 

man ; .conjugiallovewith. 



. 

natural man loves and desires only external 
conjunctions, and the bodily pleasures thence derived ; whereas 
the spiritual man loves and desires internal conjunctions and the 
spiritual satisfactions thence derived ; and these satisfactions he 
perceives are granted with one wife, with whom, he can perpetu- 
ally be more and more joined together into a one : and the more 
he enters into such conjunction the more he perceives his satis- 
factions ascending in a similar degree, and enduring to eternity- 
but respecting; anything like this the natural man has no idea 
This then is the reason why it is said, that after death conjugial 
love remains with those who go to heaven, which is the case with 
all those who become spiritual here on earth. 

39; V. THESE THINGS PTJLLY CONFEBMED BY OCULAR BK- 
MONSTBATION. That a man (homo) lives as a man after death, 
and that in this case a male is a male, and a female a female ; 
and that every one's peculiar love remains with him after death, 
especially the love of the sex and conjugial love, are positions 
which I have wished hitherto to confirm by such arguments as 
respect the understanding, and are called rational ; but since man 
(homo] from his infancy, in consequence of what has been taught 
him by his parents and masters, and afterwards by the learned 
and the clergy, has been induced to believe, that he shall not 
live a man after death until the day of the last judgement, which 
has now been expected for six thousand years ; and several have 
regarded this article of faith as one which ought to be believed, 

4:0 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 39 41 

but not intellectually conceived, it was therefore necessary that 
the above positions should be confirmed also by ocular proofs ; 
otherwise a man who belives only the evidence of his senses, in 
consequen ce of the faith previously implanted, would obj ect thus : 
" If men lived men after death, I should certainly see and hear 
them : who has ever descended from heaven, or ascended from 
hell, and given such information ?" In reply to such objections 
it is to be observed, that it never was possible, nor can it ever be, 
that any angel of heaven should descend, or any spirit of hell 
ascend, and speak with any man ? QXQgpt. witb-fcbeee who ha^ejtiie 
intgjiQrs of the mind or spirit opened by the.Lojcd; and this 
opening of the interiors cannot be fully effected except with those 
who have been prepared by the Lord to receive the things which 
are of spiritual wisdom : on which accounts it has pleased the 
Lord thus to prepare me, that the state of heaven and hell, and 
of the life of men after death, might not remain unknown, and 
be laid asleep in ignorance, and at length buried in denial. Ne- 
vertheless, ocular proofs on the subjects above mentioned, by 
reason of their copiousness, cannot here be adduced ; but they 
have ^been already adduced in the treatise on HEAVEN and HELL, 
and in the CONTINUATION RESPECTING- THE SPIRITUAL WORLD, 
and afterwards in the APOCALYPSE EEVEALED ; but especially, in 
regard to the present subject of marriages, in the MEMORABLE 
RELATIONS which are annexed to the several paragraphs or chap- 
ters of this work. 

40. YL CONSEQUENTLY THERE ARE MARRIAGES IN HEAVEN. 
This position having been confirmed by reason, and at the same 
time by experience, needs no further demonstration. 

41. Ylt. SPIRITUAL NUPTIALS ARE TO BE UNDERSTOOD BY 

THE LORD'S WORDS, " AFTER THE RESURRECTION THEY ARE NOT 

GIVEN IN MARRIAGE." In the Evangelists are these words, Cer- 
tain of the Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection, asJced 
Jesus, saying, Master, Moses wrote, If a man die, having no 
children, his brother shall take his wife, and raise up seed unto 
his brother. Now there were with us seven brethren / and the 
first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and having no issue, 
left his wife unto his brother j likewise the second also, and the 
third unto the seventh ; last of all the woman died also / there* 
fore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven t JBut 
Jesus answering, said unto them, The sons of this generation 
marry, and are given in marriage; l>ut those.wfa&katt be~m~ 
counted worthy to a^aint^ another ^enerat^n, cmdthe resurrt&> 
^iQ^'J^om"'tKe d&a^ t ahaU neither motcry norb& given in marriage 
n^Mk8^O^^ far they are like ^t<iM0Mffl ^ 

and are the sons of God, being sms v ^^here^^ectio^ Eut that 
ffi<niea!r~vw$'lty^ at the bush, when he 

called the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac^ and 
the God of Jacob / for he is not the God of the dead^ but of tfo 

41 



&1 ? 42 CONJTJGIAL LOVE 

living: for all live unto him, Luke xx. 2738 , Matt. xxii. 22 
32 ; Mark xii. 18 27. By these words the Lord taught two 
things ; first, that a man (fiomo) rises again after death ; and 
secondly, that in heaven they are not given in marriage* That a 
man rises again after death, he taught by these words, God w 
not the God of the dead, lut of the living, and when he said that 
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, are alive : he taught the same also 
in the parable concerning the rich man in hell, and Lazarus m 
heaven, Luke xvi. 2231. Secondly, that in heaven they are 
not given in marriage, he taught by these words, " Those who 
shall be accounted worthy to attain to another generation, neither 
marry nor are given in marriage" That none other than spi- 
ritual nuptials are here meant, is very evident from the words 
which immediately follow "neither can they die any more: 
leoause they are like unto the angels, and are the sons of God^ 
leing sons of the resurrection." Spiritual nuptials mean conj unc- 
tion with the Lord, which is effected on earth ; and when it is 
effected on earth, it is also effected in the heavens ; therefore in 
the heavens there is no repetition of nuptials, nor are they again 
given in marriage : this is also meant by these words, " The 
fans of this generation marry and are given in marriage; lut 
those who are accounted worthy to attain to another generation, 
neither marry nor are given in marriage" The latter are also 
called by the Lord "sons of nuptials? Matt. ix. 15; Mark ii. 
19 ; and in this place, angels, sons of God, and sons of the resur- 
rection. That to celebrate nuptials, signifies to be joined with 
the Lord, and that to enter into nuptials is to be received into 
jaeaven by the Lord, is manifest from the following passages ; 
The kingdom of heaven is like unto a man, a king, who made a 
marriage (nuptia<ls)/br his son, and sent out servants and invited 
to the marriage, Matt. xxii. 2 14. The kingdom of heaven is 
like unto ten virgins, who went forth to meet the bridegroom : of 
whom five leing prepared entered into the marriage (nuptials), 
Matt. xxv. 1, and the following verses. That the Lord here 
meant himself, is evident from verse 13, where ifc is said. Watch 
ye ; lecause ye know not the day and hour in which the Son of 
Man will come ; also from the Eevelation, The time of the mar* 
riage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself 
ready ; llessed are those who are Galled to the marriage supper of 
the Lamb, xix. 7, 9. That there is a spiritual meaning in every* 
thing which the Lord spake, has been fully shewn in the DOC- 
TRINE OF THE NEW JERUSALEM CONCERSTING- THE SACRED SCRIP- 
TURE, published at Amsterdam in the year 1763. 
^ * # # * * 

42. To the above I shall add two MEMORABLE RELATIONS 
EESPECTITO THE SPIRITUAL WORLD. The first is as follows : One 
morning I was looking upwards into heaven and saw over me 
three expanses one above another ; I saw that the first expanse, 

42 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 4:2 

wli-ich was nearest, opened, and presently the second which was 
above it, and lastly the third which was highest ; and by virtue 
of illustration thence, I perceived, that above the first expanse 
were the angels who compose the first or lowest heaven ; above 
the second expanse were the angels who compose the second or 
middle heaven ; and above the third expanse were the angels 
who compose the third or highest heaven. I wondered at first 
what all this meant : and presently I heard from heaven a voice 
as of a trumpet, saying, " We have perceived, and now see, 
that you are meditating on ^SSSSS^h^MSSkl an ^ we are a^ara 
that no one on earth as yet knows what true conjugial love is in 
its origin and in its essence ; and yet it is of importance that it 
should be known : therefore it has pleased the Lord^to open the 
heavens to you in order that / iitostj^tmg.,iig]it and 7 consequent 
percggtiqn may flow into the interiors of your mind* ,<*Witlijj8 
mTEe "heavens, especially ,ia4he third neaven^ur^Eeav^nly 
deUghJg arejDrincipallj derived from cQnjugial lovQjjJ therefore, 
inconsequence of leave granted us, we will send down to you a 
conjugial pair for your inspection and observation;" and lot 
instantly there appeared a chariot descending from the highest 
or third heaven, in which I saw one angel ; but as it approached 
I saw therein two. The chariot at a distance glittered before 
my eyes like a diamond, and to it were harnessed young horses 
white as snow ; and those who sat in the chariot held in their 
hands two turtle-doves, and called to me, saying, "Do you wish 
us to come nearer to you? but in this case take heed, lest the 
radiance, which is from the heaven whence we have descended, 
and is of a flaming quality, penetrate too interiorly ; by its 
influence the superior ideas of your understanding, which are in 
themselves heavenly, may indeed be illustrated ; but these ideas 
are ineffable in the world in which you dwell : therefore what 
you are about to hear, receive rationally, that you may explain 
it so that it may be understood." I replied, " I will observe 
your caution ; come nearer :" so they came nearer ; and lo I it 
was a husband and his wife ; who said, " ' 



we have Uyedjygjpy^^ 

jSu call tlie golden. age 5 and have, continued during that time m 
the same* TSloom of youth in which you now see us%" I viewed 
each of them attentively, because I perceived they represented 
conjugial love in its life and in its decoration ; in its life in their 
faces, afcd in its decoration in their raiment ; for all the angels 
are affections of love in a human form. The ruling affection 
itself shines forth from their faces ; and from the affection, ^and 
according to it, the kind and quality of their raiment is derived 
and determined : therefore it is said in heaven, that every one is 
clothed by his own affection. The husband appeared of a middle 
age, between manhood and youth : from liis eyes dartedjforth 
eparkling iigiit derived from the wisdoSTSTTi^ 

^ - ^ - m^JSt^^^ ,-,^, * ^^^,^^**~^ 



g CONJTOIAL LOVB 

which light his face was radiant from its inmost ground ; and i 
consequence of such radiance the surface of his skin had a kind 
of refulgence, whereby his whole face was one resplendent come- 
liness. He was dressed in an upper robe which reached down to 
his feet, and underneath it was a vesture of hyacinthine blue, 
girded about with a golden band, upon which were three precious 
stones, two sapphires on the sides, and a carbuncle in the 
middle ; his stockings were of bright shining linen, with threads 
of silver interwoven, and his shoes were of velvet : such was the 

n 1 1 fj-K j-1. _ T "U A \/V^1 t II 




saw 

> beauty 

was inexpressible; for in her face there was a splendor of 
flaming light, such as the angels in the third heaven enjoy, and 
this light made my sight dim ; so that I was lost in astonish- 
ment: she observing this addressed me, saying, "What do you 
see?" I replied, " I see nothing but conjugial love and the form 
thereof; but I see, and I do not see." Hereupon she turned 
herself sideways from her husband ; and then I was enabled^ to 
view her more attentively. Her eyes were bright and sparkling 
from the light of her own heaven, which light, as was said, is of 
a flaming quality, which it derives from the love of wisdom ; for 
in that heaven wives love their husbands from their wisdom and 
in it, and husbands love their wives from that love of wisdom 
and in it, as directed towards themselves; and thus they are 
united. This was the origin of her beauty ; which was such 
that it would be impossible for any painter to imitate and exhibit 
it in its form, for he has no colors bright and vivid enough to 
express its lustre ; nor is it in the power of his art to oepict 
Buch beauty : her hair was arranged in becoming order so as to 
Correspond with her beauty ; and in it were inserted diadems of 
ifowers ; she had a necklace of carbuncles, from which hung a 
rosary of chrysolites ; and she wore pearl bracelets ; her upper 
robe was scarlet, and underneath it she had a purple stomacher, 
fastened in front with clasps of rubies ; but what surprised me 
was, that the colors varied according to her aspect in regard to 
her husband, being sometimes more glittering, sometimes less ; 
if she were looking towards him, more, if sideways, less, When 
Ujad fflade, these obsexyaticma, they .again talked with ine ; and 
when the husband was speaking, he spoke at the same time as 
fiptn His wife; and w;hen the wife was speaking, she spoke at 
^i%SiJ^&iiw^^ 8 froni % her husband ; awkJSW . the nnioa-^f 
their minds from whence speecli flows ; and on this occasion I 
als<rlieard" the tone of voice of conjugial love; inwardly it was 
simultaneous, and it proceeded from the delights of a state of 
peace and innocence. At length they said, u We are recalled ; 
we must depart :" and instantly they again appeared to be con- 
veyed in a chariot as before. They went bj a paved way through 
44 



ASTE ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS 42 - 44 

flowering shrubberies, from the beds of which arose olives ana 
orange-trees laden with fruit : and when they approached their 
own heaven, they were met by several virgins, who welcomed 
and introduced them. 

f 43. After this I saw an angel from that heaven holding in 
his hand a roll of parchment, which he unfolded, saying, " I see 
that you are meditating on conjugial love; in this parchment 
are contained arcana of wisdom respecting that love, which have 
never yet been disclosed in the world. Jh 



. hgjgajia5r.fep be dis- 
it is of importance that they, should be :" those 
.niore in our heaven than in the rest, because -we 
are m the marriage of love and wisdom ; b^tj prophesy that 
25.? U appropriate to themselves that lovejbuj; tiose^iqare 
received by the Lord into the New Church^ which is the New 
^J'salem." Having said this, the angel let "Sown the unfolded 
parchment, which a certain angelic spirit received from him, 
and laid on a table in a certain closet, which lie instantly locked. 
and holding out the key to me, said, " Write." 

t 44. THE SECOND MEHOKABLE KELATIOST. I once saw three 
spirits recently deceased, who were wandering about in the 
world of spirits, examining whatever came in their way, and 
inquiring concerning it. They were all amazement to find that 
men lived altogether as before, and that the objects they saw 
were similar to those they had seen before: for they knew that 
they were departed out of the former or natural world, and that 
in that world they believed that they should not live as men 
until after the day of the last judgement, when they should be 
again clothed with the flesh and bones that had been laid in 
the tomb; therefore, in order to remove all doubt of their being 
really and truly men, they by turns viewed and touched them- 
selves and others, and felt the surrounding objects, and by a 
thousand proofs convinced themselves that they now were men 
as m the former world; besides which they saw each other in a 
brighter light, and the surrounding objects in superior splendor, 
and thus their vision was more perfect. At that instant two 
angelic spirits happening to meet tfiem, accosted them, saying, 
"Whence are you?" They replied, "We have departed out 
of a world, and again we live in a world ; thus we have removed 
from one world to another ; and this surprises us." Hereupon 
the three novitiate spirits questioned the two angelic spirits con- 
cerning heaven ; and as two of the three novitiates were youths, 
and there darted from their eyes as it were a sparkling fire of 
lust for the sex, the angelic spirit said, " Possibly you have seen 
some females ;" and they replied in the affirmative ; and as they 
made inquiry respecting heaven, the angelic spirits gave them 
the following information; a In heaven there is every variety of 
magnificent and splendid objects, and such things as the eye 
had never seen ; there are also virgins and young men ; virgin* 



i4 OQNJTKHAL LOTS 

of sucli beauty that they may be called personifications of beauty, 
and young men of such morality that they may be called per 
Bonifications of morality ; moreover the haajotyjof the, virgins and 
the-ioorality r of the yoiing~men correspond to each other, as forms 
mutually^suited to each other. Hereupon the two novitiates 
asked, " Are there in heaven human forms altogether similar to 
those in the natural world?" And it^was replied, "They are 
altogether similar; nothing is wanting in the male, and nothing 
in the female ; in a word, the male is a male, and the female a 
female, in all the perfection of form in which they were created : 
retire, if you please, and examine if you are deficient in anything, 
and whether you are not a complete man as before. 55 Again, 
the novitiates said, " We have been told in the world we have 
left, that in heaven they are not given in marriage, because they 
are angels ; is there then the love of the sex there 3" And the 
angelic spirits replied, "In,, heaven your love of the sex does not 
exist ; but we have the angelic love of the sex, which is chaste, 
and deypid all libidinous allurement.'' Hereupon the novitiates 
observed, jf there be a love of the sex devoid of all allurement, 
what in such cases is the love of the sex 3" And while they were 
thinking about this love they sighed, and said, " Oh, how dry and 
insipid is the joy of heaven! What young man, if this be the 
case, can possibly wish for heaven ? Is not such love barren and 
devoid of life 1" To this the angplic spirits replied, with a smile, 
" IJhe^angelic love of the sex, such as exists in heaven, is never- 
thellillf^^ it is the most agreeaBTe* ex- 

pansion of all the principles of the mind, and thence of all the 
parts of the breast, existing inwardly ia the breast, and sporting 
therein as the heart sports with the lungs, giving birth tnereby 
to respiration, tone of voice, and speech ; so that the intercourse 
between the sexes, or between youths and virgins, is an inter- 
course of essential c&le^iLsweet&j^ All novi* 
tiates, on ascending into heaven, are examined as to the quality 
of their chastity, being let into the company of virgins, the 
beauties of heaven, who from their tone of voice, their speech, 
their face, their eyes, their gesture, and their exhaling sphere, 
perceive what is their quality in regard to the love of the sex ; 
and if their love be unchaste, they instantly quit them, and 
tell their fellow-angels that they have seen satyrs or priapuses. 
The new comers also undergo a change, and in the eyes of the 
angels appear rough and hairy, and with feet like calves' o> 
leopards', and presently they are cast down again, lest by their 
lust they should defile the heavenly atmosphere.' 5 On receiving 
this information, the two novitiates again said, " According to 
this, there is no love of the sex in heaven ; for what is a chaste 
love of the sex, but a tove deprived of the essence of its life I 
And must not all the intercourse of youths and virgins, in such 
case, consist of dry insipid joys f We are not stocks and stones, 



ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 44 

but perceptions and affections of life." To this the angelic spirits 
indignantly replied, "You are altogether ignorant what a chaste 
love of the sex is ; because as yet you are not chaste. This love 
is the very essential delight of the mind, and thence of the heart ; 
and not at the same time of the flesh beneath the heart. An- 
gelic chastity, which is common, to each sex, prevents the passage 
of that love beyond the enclosure of the heart ; tut within, that 
and above it ? tne morality of a youth is delighted with the beauty 
of a virgin in the delights of the chaste love, of the" jsex: 3vbich 
deligEts are of too interior a nature, and too abun<|ant]y.j>leas#nfc 
to admit jojjiny, description jnjwojds. The angels have this 1698 
ofHEe sex, because they have conjugial love only ; whichlove 
cannot exist together with the unchaste love of the sex|*TCove 
truly conjugial is chaste, and has nothing in common with un- 
chaste love, be|ng confined to one of the sex, and separate from 
all others ; for it is a love of the spirit and thence of the body, 
and not a love of the body and thence of the spirit ; that is, it 
is not a love infesting the spirit." On hearing this, the two 
young novitiates rejoiced, and said, " There still exists in heaven 
a love of the sex ; what else is conjugial love ?" But the angelic 
spirits replied, " Think more profoundly, weigh the matter well 
in your minds, and you will perceive, that your love of the sex 
is a love extra-eonjugial, and quite different from conjugial love ; 
the latter being as distinct from the former, as wheat is from 
chaff, or rather as the human principle is from the bestial. If 
you should ask the females in heaven, '"What is love extra- 
conjugial ?' I take upon me to say, their reply will be, c What 
do you mean ? "What do you say ? How can you utter a ques- 
tion which so wounds our ears ? How can a love that is not 
created ^be implanted in any one F If you should then ask them, 
* What is love truly conjugial P I know they will reply, i itisjjat 
ihJbvj^ the love of one of thj3j8ex ; and it has no 

other groi^^ a youth sees a 

virgin provided by the Lord, and a virgin sees a youth, they are 
each made sensible of a conjugial principle kindling in their 
hearts, and perceive that each is the other's, he hers, and she his ; 
for love meets love and causes them to know^ each other, and 
instantly s conjqinj their souls, and afterwards tli^uvjaiad^, and 
tjignj^a enters their bosoma, and after the nuptials penetrates fur- 
ther, and thus becomes love in its fulness, which grows every day 
into conjunction, till they are no longer two, but as it were one.' 
I know also that they will be ready to affirm in the most solemn 
manner, that they are not acquainted with any other love of the 
sex ; for they say, * How can there be a love of the sex, unless 
it be tending mutually to meet, and reciprocal, so as to seek an 
eternal union, which consists in two tecoming one flesh F " To 
this the angelic spirits added, ( U^^b^^.th^.ar^in4o^al 
ignorance what whoredom is : nor do they, know that it exists* 

' * " ~ ~ " " ir 



44 CONJUOIAL LOVE 



^-. The angels feel a cliill all 
over the body atTKTidea of unchaste or extra-conjugial love ; and 
on the other hand, they feel a genial warmth throughout the 
body arising from chaste or conjngial love, ^'^ijhth^jualea^ll 
thn^L'yes,lose their proper tension atjli^jsjglit of a harlot, and 
rg^^^itjigain at ttosight^ofc-fl*wi'K^ The three novitiates, 
on hearingfthis, asked, "Does a similar love exist between mar- 
ried partners in the heavens as in the earths ?" The two angelic 
spirits replied, that it was altogether similar; and as they per- 
ceived in the novitiates an inclination to know, whether in hea- 
ven there were similar ultimate delights, they said, that they 
were exactly similar, but much more blessed, because angelic 
perception and sensation is much more exquisite than human : 
" and what," added they, " is the life of that love unless derived 
from a flow of vigor? When this vigor fails, must not the love 
itself also fail ana grow cold ? Is not this vigor the very mea- 
sure, degree, and basis of that love? It it not its beginning, its 
support, and its fulfilment ? It is a universal law, that things 
primary exist, subsist, and persist from things ultimate : this is 
true also of that love; therefore unless there were ultimate de- 
lights, there would be no delights of conjugial love. ?> The novi- 
tiates then asked, whether from the ultimate delights of that love 
in heaven any offspring were produced ; and if not, to what use 
did those delights serve? The angelic spirit answered, that 
natural offspring were not produced, but spiritual offspring: and 
the novitiates said, " What are spiritual offspring ?" They replied, 
" Two conjngial partners by ultimate delights are more and more 
united in the marriage of gpod ancktoith, which is the marriage 
of love and wisdom^-atid Tove and wisdom are the offspring 
produced therefrom : in heaven the husband is wisdom, arid the 
wife is the love thereof, and both are spiritual ; therefore, no 
other than spiritual offspring can be there conceived and born : 
benefit is that the angels, after such delights, do ;rjot experience 
sachiejsgfc as some do m^ardvl^^ 5 and this in con-' 

^equence of a continual influx of fresh powers succeeding the 
former, which serve for their renovation, and at the same time 
illustration : for all who come into heaven, return into their ver 
Dal youth, and into the vigor of that age, and thus continue to 
eternity/' The three novitiates, on hearing this, said, "Is it not 
written in the Word, that in heaven they are not given in mar- 
riage, because they are angels ?" To which the angelic spirits 
replied, " Look up into heaven and you will receive an answer :" 
and they asked, " Why are we to look up into heaven ?" They 
said, " Because thence we receive all interpretations of the Word. 
The Word is altogether spiritual and the angels being spiritual, 
trill teach the spiritual understanding of it. They did not wait 
long before heaven was opened over their heads, and two angels 
appeared in view, and said, " There are nuptials in the heavens, 
48 



AOT ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 44, 45 

as on eaith ; but only with those in the heavens who are in the 
marriage of good and truth ; nor are any other angels : therefore 
it is spiritual nuptials, which relate to the marriage of good and 
truth, that are there understood. These (viz. spiritual nuptials) 
take place on earth, but not after departure thence, thus not in 
the heavens ; as it is said of the five foolish virgins, who were 
also invited to the nuptials, that they could not enter, because 
they were not in the marriage of good and truth ; for they had 
no oil, but ^only lamps. Oil signifies good, and lamps truth ; 
and to be given in marriage denotes to enter heaven, where the 
marriage of good and truth takes place." The three novitiates 
were made glad by this intelligence ; and being filled with a de- 
sire of heaven, and with the hope of heavenly nuptials, they said, 
44 We .will apply ourselves with all diligence to the. practice, of - 
morality and a becoming conduct of life, that we may enjoy our 

a~*t ^ -, ,,fy , f , *. jni ir <st - ' r i -f ^f , f / V / 

wishes. 



ON THE STATE OF MARRIED PARTNERS AFTER DEATH. 

45. THAT there are marriages in the heavens, has been 
.shewn just above ; it remains now to be considered, whether the 
marriage-covenant ratified in the world will remain and be in 
force after death, or not. As this is a question not of judgement 
but of experience, and as experience herein has been granted me 
'by consociation with angels and spirits, I will here adduce it; 
but yet so that reason may assent thereto. To have this question 
determined, is also an object of the wishes and desires of all 
married persons ; for husbands who have loved their wives, in 
case they die, are desirous to know whether it be well with them, 
and whether they shall ever meet again ; and the same is true of 
wives in regaid to their husbands. Many married pairs also 
wish to know beforehand whether they are to be separated after 
death, or to live together : those who have disagreed in their 
tempers, wish to know whether they are to be separated ; and 
those who have agreed, whether they are to live together. In- 
formation on this subject then being much wished for, we will 
now proceed to give it in the folio wing order : I. The love of the 
sex remains with every man (homo) after death, according to its 
interior quality / that is, such as it had been in his interior will 
and thought in the world. II. The same is true of conjugial love. 
III. Married partners most commonly meet after death, know 
each other, again associate and for a time live together : this w 
the case in the Jirst state, thus while they are in externals as in 
the world. IV. But successively, as they put off their externals, 
and enter into their internals, they perceive what had been the 
quality of their love and inclination for each other, and conse* 



45 47 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

quently whether they can live together or not. V. If they can 
live together ', they remain married partners ; but i they cannot 
they separate ; sometimes the husband from the wife, sometimes 
the wife from the husband, and sometimes each from the other. 

_ . . -Si *^ . . -. . > *^ _7 7 . *_/'- - 3 Jt^ 



VI. Jfo tfAis tfastf 2^7*0 2$ m>m fc> 2A<? w^m a suitable wife, and^ to 
the woman a suitaUe husband. VII. Married partners enjoy 
similar communications with each other as m the world, lut more 
delightful and blessed, yet without proliftcation ; in the place of 
which they experience spiritual proliftcation^ which is that ofl&vt 
and wisdom. VIII. This uYAe case with those who go to heaven ; 
lut it is otherwise with those who go to helL We now proceed 
to an explanation of these propositions, by which they may be 
illustrated and confirmed. 

46. I. THE LOVE OF THE SEX EEMAINS WITH EVERT MAN 

AFTER DEATH, ACCORDING TO ITS INTERIOR QUALITY; THAT IS, 
SUCH AS IT HAD BEEN IN HIS INTERIOR WILL AND THOUGHT IN 

THE WORLD. Every love follows a man after death, because it 
is the esse of his life ; and the ruling love, which is the head of 
the rest, remains with him to eternity, and together with it the 
subordinate loves. The reason why they remain, is, because love 
properly appertains to the spirit of man, and to the body by de- 
rivation from the spirit ; and a man after death becomes a spirit 
and thereby carries his love along with him; as love is the 
esse of a man's life, it is evident, that such as a man's life has 
been in the world, such is his lot after death. The love of the 
eex is the most universal of all loves, being implanted from crea- 
tion in the very soul of man, from which tne essence of the 
whole man is derived, and this for the sake of the propagation 
of the human race. The reason why this love chiefly remains, 
is, because after death a male is a male, and a female a female, 
and because there is nothing in the soul, the mind, and the body, 
which is not male (or masculine) in the male, and female (or 
feminine) in the female ; and these two (the male and female) 
are so created, that they have a continual tendency to conjunc- 
tion, yea, to such a conjunction as to become a one. This ten* 

,, which precedes conjugial loveTT?Tow, 



since a conjunctive inclination is inscribed on every part and 
principle of the male and of the female, it follows, that this 
inclination cannot be destroyed and die with the body. 

47. The reason why the love of the sex remains such aa it 
was interiorly in the world, is, because every man has an interna 
and an external, which are also called the internal and external 
man ; and hence there is an internal and an external will and 
thought. A man when he dies, quits his external, and retains 
his internal ; for externals properly belong to his body, and in- 
ternals to his spirit. M" ow since every man is his own love, and 
love resides in the spirit, it follows, tfiat the love of the sex re- 
mains Yfith him after death, such as it was interiorly with him ; 
50 



AND ITS OHASTE DELIGHTS. 47, 48, 47* 

as for example, if the love interiorly had been conjugial and 
chaste, it remains such after death ; but if it had been interiorly 
adulterous (anti-conjugial), it remains such also after death. It 
is however to be observed that the love of the sex is not the 
same with one person as with another ; its differences are infinite: 
nevertheless, such as it is in any one's spirit, such it remains. 
48. II. CONJUGIAL LOVE IN LIKE MANNER REMAINS SUCH 

AS IT HAD BEEN INTEEIOELY J THAT IS, SUCH AS IT HAD BEES 
IN THE MAN'S INTERIOR WILL AND THOTJHHT IN THE WORLD. 

As the love of the sex is one thing, and conjugial love another, 
therefore mention is made of each ; and it is said, that the latter 
also remains after death such as it has been internally with a 
man, during his abode in the world : but as few know the dis- 
tinction between the love of the sex and conjugial love, therefore, 
before we proceed further in the subject of this treatise, it may 
be expedient briefly to point it out. ^e jve_of Jhe sex is 
directed to several, and contracted with several of ,the r 3^ ; Jbut 
c^sjjagiaLlai^ .i^irectej^t^jpAljC.ojae, ,and .contracted ,witk one 
of tnasex ; moreover, love directed to and contracted with several 
is a natural Jove ; for it is common to man with beasts and birds, 
whicTi are natural : but conjugial love is a spiritual love, and 
peculiar and proper to men ; becau^amaa.w ere- created, and ate. 
therefore born to become spiritual ; therefore, so far aa a man 
Becomes spiritual, so far he puts off the love of the sex, and 
J^^^jgonjugial love* In the beginning of marriage the love 
oftEe sex appears as if conjoined with conjugial love; but in 
the progress of marriage they are separated ; and in this case, 
with such as are spiritual, the love of the sex is removed, and 
conjugial love is imparted; but with such as are natural, the 
contrary happens. From these observations it is evident, that 
the love of the sex, being directed to and contracted with several 
and being in itself natural, yea, animal, is impure and unchaste, 
and being vague and indeterminate in its object, is adulterous ; 
but the case is altogether different with conjugial love. That 
conjugial love is spiritual, and truly human, will manifestly 
appear from what follows. 

47.* Ill MARRIED PARTNERS MOST COMMONLY MEET AFTEK 

DEATH, KNOW EACH OTHER, AGAIN ASSOCIATE, AND FOR A TIME 

LIVE TOGETHER: THIS is THE CASE IN THE FIRST STATE, THUS 

WHILE THEY ARE IN EXTERNALS AS IN THE WORLD. There are 

two states in which a man (homo) enters after death, an exter- 
nal and an internal state. He comes first into his external 
state, and afterwards into his internal ; and during the external 
state, married partners meet each other, (supposing they are 
both deceased,) know each other, and if they have lived together 
in the world, associate again, and for some time live together ; 
and while they are in this state they do not know the inclination 
cf each to the other, this being concealed in the internals of 

51 



47*, 48*, CONJUGIAL LOVE 

each ; but afterwards, when they come into their internal state 
the inclination manifests itself; and if it be in mutual agree- 
ment and sympathy, they continue to live together a eonjugial 
life ; but if"it be in disagreement and antipathy, their marriage 
is dissolved. In case a man had had several wives j( he succes- 
sively joins himself with them, while he is in his ^external 
state'; but when he enters into his internal state, in which 
he perceives the inclinations of his love, and of what quality 
they are, he then either adopts one or leaves them all; Jor 
ip.,the spiritual world, as well as in the natural, it^is not 
allowable for any Christian to have more ^ than one wife^as it 
I&ijgsts .and profanes, religion. The case is the same with a 
woman that had had several husbands : nevertheless the women 
in this case do not join themselves to their husbands ; they only 
present themselves, and the husbands j'oin them to themselves. 
It is to be observed that husbands rarely know their wives, but 
that wives well know their husbands, women having an interior 
perception of love, and men only an exterior. 

48.* J.V. BUT SUCCESSIVELY, AS THEY PUT OFF THEIR EX- 
TERNALS AND ENTER INTO THEIR INTERNALS, THEY PERCEIVE 
WHAT HAD BEEN THE QUALITY OF THEIR LOVE AND INCLINATION 
FOR EACH OTHER, AND CONSEQUENTLY WHETHER THEY CAN LIVE 

TOG-ETHER OR NOT. There is no occasion to explain this further, 
as it follows from what is shewn in the previous section ; suffice 
it here to shew how a man (homo) after death puts off his ex- 
ternals and puts on his internals. Every one after death is first 
introduced into the world which is called the world of spirits, 
and which is intermediate between heaven and hell ; and in that 
world he is prepared, for heaven if he is good, and for hell if he 
" is evil. The end or design of this preparation is, that the in- 
ternal and external may agree together and make a one, and not 
disagree and make two : in the natural world they frequently 
make two, and only make a one with those who are sincere in 
heart. That they make two is evident from the deceitful and 
the cunning ; especially from hypocrites, flatterers, dissemblers, 
and liars : but in the spiritual world it is not allowable thus to 
have a divided mind ; for whoever has been internally wicked 
must also be externally wicked ; in like manner, whoever has 
been good, must be good in each principle : for every man after 
death becomes of such a quality as he had been interiorly, and 
not such as he had been exteriorly. For this end, after his 
decease, he is let alternately into his external and his internal ; 
and every one, while he is in his external, is wise, that is, he 
wishes to appear wise, even though he be wicked ; but a wicked 
person internally is insane. By those changes he is enabled to 
see his follies, and to repent of them : but if he had not repented 
in the world, he cannot afterwards ; for he loves his follies, and 
wishes to remain in them : therefore he forces his external also 
52 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 48* -50 

to be equally insane ; thus his internal and his external become 
a one ; and when this is effected, he is prepared for hell. But it 
is otherwise with a good spirit : such a one, as in the world he had 
looked unto God and had repented, was more wise in his in- 
ternal than in his external : in his external also, through the 
allurements and vanities of the world, he was sometimes led 
astray ; therefore his external is likewise reduced to agreement 
with his internal, which, as was said, is wise; and when this is 
effected he is prepared for heaven. From these considerations it 
may plainly appear, how the case is in regard to putting off the 
external and putting on the internal after death. 

49. V. IF THEY CAN LIVE TOGETHER, THEY REMAIN MAR- 
EIED PARTNERS J BUT IF THEY CANNOT, THEY SEPARATE J SOME- 
TIMES THE HUSBAND FROM THE WIFE, SOMETIMES THE WIFE 
FROM THE HUSBAND, AND SOMETIMES EACH FROM THE OTHER. 

The reason why separations take place after death is, because 
the conjunctions which are made on earth are seldom made 
from any internal perception of love, but from an external 
perception, which hides the internal. The external perception 
of love originates in such things as regard the love of the world 
and of the body. Wealth and large possessions are peculiarly 
the objects of worldly love, while dignities and honors are those 
of the love of the body: besides these objects, there are also 
various enticing allurements, such as beauty and an external 
polish of manners, and sometimes even an unchasteness of cha- 
racter. Moreover, matrimonial engagements are frequently 
contracted within the particular district, city, or village, in 
which the parties were born, and where they live ; in which 
case the choice is confined and limited to families that are 
known, and to such as are in similar circumstances in life : hence 
matrimonial connections made in the world are for the most 
part external, and not at the same time internal ; when yet it is 
the internal conjunction, or the conjunction of souls, which con- 
stitutes a real marriage ; and this conjunction is not perceivable 
until the man puts on the external and puts on the internal; as 
is the case after death. This then is the reason why separations 
take place, and afterwards, new conjunctions are formed with 
such as are of a similar nature and disposition ; unless these 
conjunctions have been provided on earth, as happens with 
those who from an early age have loved, have desired, and have 
asked of the Lord an honorable and lovely connection with one 
of the sex, shunning and abominating the impulses of a loosa 
and wandering lust. 

50. VL IN THIS CASE THERE IB GIVEN TO THE MAN A SUIT- 
ABLE WIFE, AND TO THE WOMAN A SUITABLE HUSBAND. The lea- 

son of this is, because no married partners can be received into 
heaven, so as to remain there, but such as have been interiorly 

53 



g09 51 CONJUOIAL LOVE 

united, or as are capable of being so united; for in heaven two 
married partners are not called two, but one angel ; this is un- 
derstood by the Lord's words " They are no longer two, but oiu 
fask." The reason why no other married partners are there re- 
ceived is, because in heaven no others can live together in one 
house, and in one chamber and bed ; for ail in the heavens are 
associated according to the affinities and relationships of love, 
and have their habitations accordingly. In the spiritual world 
there are not spaces, but the appearance of spaces ; and^ these 
appearances are according to the states of life of the inhabitants, 
which are according to their states of love ; therefore in that 
world no one can dwell but in his own house, which is provided 
for him and assigned to him according to the quality of his love : 
if he dwells in'ariy other, he is straitened and pained in his 
oreast and breathing ; and it is impossible for two to dwell to- 
gether in the same house unless they are likenesses ; neither can 
married partners so dwell together, unless they are mutual incli- 
nations ; if they are external inclinations, and not at the same 
time internal, the very house or place itself separates, and rejects 
and expels them. This is the reason why for those who after 
preparation are introduced into heaven, there is provided a mar- 
riage with a consort whose soul inclines to mutual union with 
the soul of another, so that they no longer wish to be two li ves, 
but one, This is the reason why after separation there is given 
to the man a suitable wife and to the woman in like manner a 
suitable husband. 

51, Y1L MARRIED PAIRS ENJOY SIMILAR COMMUNICATIONS 

WITH EACH OTHER AS IN THE WORLD, BUT MORE DELIG-HTFUL 
AND BLESSED, YET WITHOUT PROLIFICATION ; IN THE PLACE OF 
WHICH THEY EXPERIENCE SPIRITUAL PROLIFICATION, WHICH IS 

THAT OF LOVE AND WISDOM. The reason why married pairs 
enjoy similar communications as in the world, is, because after 
death a male is a male, and a female a female, and there is im- 
planted in each at creation an inclination to conjunction; and 
this inclination with man is the inclination of his spirit and thence 
of his body ; therefore after death, when a man becomes a spirit, 
the same mutual inclination remains, and this cannot exist with- 
out similar communications ; for after death a man is a man as 
before ; neither is there any thing wanting either in the male or 
in the female : as to form, they are like themselves, and also as to 
affections and thoughts ; and what must be the necessary conse- 
quence, but that they must enjoy like communications? And 
as conjugial love is chaste, pure, and holy, therefore their coin 
munications are ample and complete ; but on this subject see 
what was said in the MEMORABLE RELATION, n. 44 The reason 
why such communications are more delightful and blessed than 
in the world, is, because conjugial love, as it is the love of the 
54 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 51 54 

spirit, becomes interior and purer, and thereby more perceiv- 
able; and every delight increases according to perception, and 
to such a degree that its blessedness is discernible in its delight. 

52. The reason why marriages in the heavens are without 
prolification, and that in place thereof there is experienced spi- 
ritual prolification, which is that of love and wisdom, is, because 
with the inhabitants of the spiritual world, the third principle 
the natural, is wanting ; and it is this which contains the spirit- 
ual principles ; and these without that which contains them have 
to consistence, like the productions of the natural world : more- 
over spiritual principles, considered in themselves, have relation 
to love and wisdom ; therefore love and wisdom are the births 
produced from marriages in the heavens. These are called births, 
because conjugial love perfects an angel, uniting him with his 
consort, in consequence whereof he becomes more and more a 
man (homo) / for, as was said above, two married partners in 
heaven are not two but one angel ; wherefore by conjugial unition 
they fill themselves with the human principle, which consists in 
desiring to grow wise, and in loving whatever relates to wisdom. 

53. Till. THIS IS TEE CASE WITH THOSE WHO GO TO HEA- 
VEN J BUT IT IS OTHERWISE WITH THOSE WHO GO TO HELL. 

That after death a suitable wife is given to a husband, and a 
suitable husband to a wife, and that they enjoy delightful and 
blessed communications, but without prolification, except of a 
spiritual kind, is to be understood of those who are received into 
heaven and become angels ; because such are spiritual, and 
marriages in themselves are spiritual and thence holy : but with 
respect to those who go to hell, they are all natural ; and mar- 
riages merely natural are not marriages, but conjunctions which 
originate in unchaste lust. The nature and quality of such con- 
junctions will be shewn in the following pages, when we come to 
treat of the chaste and the unchaste principles, and further when 
we come to treat of adulterous love. 

54. To what has been above related concerning the state of 
married partners after death, it may be expedient to add the 
following circumstances. I. That all those married partners 
who are merely natural, are separated after death ; because with 
them the love of marriage grows cold, and the love of adultery 
grows warm: nevertheless after separation, tHey sometimes asso 
ciate as married partners with others ; but after a short time they 
withdraw from each other : and this in many cases is done 
repeatedly ; till at length the man is made over to some harlot 
and the woman to some adulterer ; which is effected in an infer* 
nal prison : concerning which prison, see the APOCALYPSE R 
VBALED, n. 153, x., where promiscuous whoredom is forbidden 
each party tinder certain pains and penalties. IL Married part- 
ners, of whom one is spiritual and the other natural, are also 
separated after death ; and to the spiritual is given a suitable 

55 



54-, 55 CONJTTGIAL LOVE 

married partner : whereas the natural one is sent to the resorts 
of the lascivious among his like. III. But those, who m the 
world have lived a single life, and have altogether alienated then? 
minds from marriage, in case they be spiritual, remain^ single ; 
but if natural, they become whoremongers. It is otherwise with 
those, who in their single state have desired marriage, and espe- 
cially if they have solicited it without success ; for such, if they 
are spiritual, blessed marriages are provided, but not until they 
come into heaven. IY. Those who in the world have been shut 
tip in monasteries, both men and wome;^ at the conclusion of 
the monastic life, which continues some time after death, are let 
loose and discharged, and enjoy the free indulgence of their 
desires, whether they are disposed to live in a married state or 
not : if they are disposed to live in a married state, this is granted 
them ; but if otherwise, they are conveyed to those who live in 
celibacy on the side of heaven ; such, however, as have indulged 
the fires of prohibited lust, are cast down. V. The reason why 
those who live in celibacy are oa the side of heaven, is, because 
the sphere of perpetual celibacy infests the sphere of conjugial 
love, which is the very essential sphere of heaven ; and the rea- 
son why the sphere of conjugial love is the very essential sphere 
otheaven 3 is, because it descends from the heavenly maraagp 
of the Lord agdjjj^^ 

55. To the above, I shall add two MEMOEABLE RELATIONS : 
the ITEST is this. On a certain time I heard from heaven^ the 
sweetest melody, arising from a song that was sung by wives 
and virgins in heaven. The sweetness of their singing was like 
the affection of some kind of love flowing forth harmoniously. 
Heavenly songs are in reality sonorous affections, or affections 
expressed and modified by 'sounds ; for as the thoughts are 
expressed by speech, so the affections are expressed by songs ; 
and from the measure and flow of the modulation, the angels 
perceive the object of the affection. On this occasion there were 
many spirits about me ; and some of them informed me that 
they heard this delightful melody, and that it was the melody ol 
some lovely affection, the object of which they did not know : 
they therefore made various conjectures about it, but in vain. 
Some conjectured that the singing expressed the affection of a 
bridegroom and bride when they sign the marriage-articles ; some 
that it expressed the affection of a bridegroom and a bride at the 
solemnizing of the nuptials; and some that it expressed the pri- 
mitive love of a husband and a wife. But at that instant there 
appeared in the midst of them an angel from heaven, who said, 
that they were singing the chaste J^ej^the sgj. Hereupon 
some of the bystanders aske^T^What is theTchaste love of the 
sex I" And the angel answered, " It is the love which a man 
bears towards a beautiful and elegant virgin or wife* free from 
56 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 58 

every lascivious idea, and the same love experienced by a viigin 
or a wife towards a man." As lie said this, lie disappeared. The 
singing continued ; and as the bystanders then knew the subject 
of the affection which it expressed, they heard it very variously, 
every one according to the state of his love. Those "who looked 
upon women chastely, heard it as a song of symphony and sweet- 
ness ; those who looked upon them un chastely, heard it as a 
discordant and mournful song; and those who looked upon them 
disdainfully, heard it as a song that was harsh and grating. At 
that instant the place on which they stood was suddenly changed 
into a theatre, and a voice was heard, saying, " lOTESTiaATB 
THIS LOVE :" and immediately spirits from various societies pre- 
sented themselves, and in the midst of them some angels in 
white. The latter then said, " We in this spiritual world have 
inquired into every species of love, not only into the love which 
a man has for a man, and a woman for a woman ; and into the 
reciprocal love of a husband and a wife ; but also into the love 
which a man has for woman, and which a woman has for men ; 
and we have been permitted to pass through societies and exa- 
mine them, and we have never yet found, the common love of 
chaste v except with those who from true conjugial love 
' 



^ .potency,, and these are in the highest heavens. 

We have also been permitted to perceive the influx of this love 
into the affections of our hearts, and have been made sensible 
that it surpasses in sweetness every other love, except the love 
of two conjugial partners whose hearts are as one : but we have 
besought you to investigate this love, because it is new and 
unknown to you ; and since it is essential pleasantness, we in 
heaven call it t.^as^^^^tAfiss." They then began the inves- 
tigation ; and those spoke first whofeere unable to mink chastely 
of marriage!! They said, "What man when he beholds a beau- 
tiful and lovely virgin or wife, can so correct or purify the ideas 
of his thought from concupiscence, as to loy^the^aiijb r ,and yet 
have no inclination, to taste It* if it.Se attowa^el Who cat 



it, if Jt ~0e allowable? Who can 
convert concupiscence, which is innate in every man, into siicli 
chastity, thus into somewhat not itself, and yet love ? Can the 
love of the sex, when it enters by the eyes into the thoughts, 
stop at the face of a woman ? Does it not descend instantly into 
the breast, and beyond it? The angels talk idly in saying that 
this love .i .chaste, and yet is the sweetest of all loves, and that 
it can only exist with husbands who are in true conjugial love, 
and thence in an extreme degree of potency with their wives. 
Do such husbands possess aay peculiar power more than other 
tnen, when they see a beautiful woman, of keeping the ideas of 
their thought in a state of elevation, and as it were of suspend- 
ing them, so that they cannot descend and proceed to what con- 
stitutes that lore 2" The argument was next taken up by those 
who were in cold and in heat ; in cold towards their wives, and 

57 



55 OON. T ITGIAL LOVE 

in heat towards the sex; and they said, " What is the cha&ta 
Jove of the sex ? Is it not a contradiction in terms to talk or 
such a love ? If chastity be predicated of the love of the sex, 13 
not this destroying the very thing of which it is predicated ? 
How can the chaste love of the sex be the sweetest of all loves, 
when chastity deprives it of its sweetness? You all know where 
the sweetness of that love resides; when therefore the idea con- 
nected therewith is banished from the mind, where and whence 
is the sweetness ?" At that instant certain spirits interrupted 
them, and said, " We have been in company with the most 
beautiful females and have had no last; therefore we know what 
the chaste love of the sex is." But their companions, who were 
acquainted with their lasciviousness, replied, " You^were at those 
times in a state of loathing towards the sex, arising from im- 
potence ; and this is not the chaste love of the sex, but the ulti- 
mate of unchaste love." On hearing what had been said, the 
angels were indignant and requested those who stood on the 
right, or to the south, to deliver their sentiments. They said, 
44 There is a love of one man to another, and also of one woman 
to another ; and there is a love of a man to a woman, and of a 
woman to a man ; and these three pairs of loves totally differ 
from each other. The love of one man to another is as the love 
of understanding and understanding; for the man was created 
and consequently born to become understanding : the love of one 
woman to another is as the love of affection and affection of the 
understanding of men ; for the woman was created and born^to 
become a love of the understanding of a man. These loves, viz., 
of one man to another, and of one woman to another, do not 
enter deeply into the bosom, but remain without, and only touch 
each other; thus they do not interiorly conjoin the two parties : 
wherefore also two men, by their mutual reasonings, sometimes 
engage in combat together like two wrestlers ; and two women, 
by their mutual concupiscences, are at war with each other like 
two prize-fighters. But the love of a man and a woman is the 
love of the understanding and of its affection ; and this love 
enters deeply and effects conjunction, which is that love; bnt 
the cpnjunction of minds, and not ,rt.tha same time oJ&odiQsJ"or 
the endeavour towards "ttl^rconjunction alone, is spiritual love, 
and consequently chast }we ; and this love exists only with those 
who are in triie cbnjugial love, and thence in an eminent degree 
of potency ; because such, from their chastity, do not admit an 
influx of love from the body of any other woman than of their 
own wives ; and as they are in an extreme degree of potency, 
they cannot do otherwise than love the sex, and at the same 
time hold in aversion whatever is unchaste. Hence they are 
principled in a chaste love of the sex, which, considered in itself, 
is interior spiritual friendship, deriving its sweetness from an 
eminent degree of potency, but still being chaste* r 
58 



AOT ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 55, 58 

degree of ;>otency ;hey possess in consequence of a total renun- 
ciation of whoredom ; and as each loves his own wife alone, tLo 
potency is chaste. Now, since this love with such partakes not 
of the flesh, but only of the spirit, therefore it is chaste ; and as 
the beauty of the woman, from innate inclination, enters at the 
same time into the mind, therefore the love is sweet." On 
heading this, many of the bystanders put their hands to their 
ears, saying, "13? hat has been said offends our ears; and what 
you have spoken is of no account with us," These spirits were 
unchaste. Then again was heard the singing from heaven, and 
sweeter now than before; but to the unchaste it was so grating 
and ^ discordant that they hurried out of the theatre and fled, 
leaving behind them only the few who from wisdom loved con- 
mgial chastitv^" 

56. THE SECOND MEMORABLE RELATION. As I was con- 
versing with angels some time ago in the spiritual world, I was 
inspired with a desire, attended with a pleasing satisfaction, to 
see the TOgM oF^wisDOM^which I had seen once before; and 
accordmglyi asted"'tEem the way to it They said, "Follow 
the light and you will find it." I said, " What do you mean 
by ( following the light?" They replied, "Our light grows 
brighter and brighter as we approach that temple ; wherefore, 
follow the light according to the increase of its brightness ; for 
pur light proceeds from the Lord as a sun, and thence considered 
in itself is wisdom." I immediately directed my course, in 
company with tw<> angels, according to the increase of the 
brightness of the light, and ascending by a steep path to the 
summit of a hill in the southern quarter* There we found a 
magnificent gate, which the keeper, on seeing the angels with 
me, opened ; and lo 1 we saw an avenue of palm-trees ancl laurels, 
according to which we directed our course. It was a winding 
avenue, and terminatad in a garden, in the middle of which was 
the TEMPLE OF WISDOM. On arriving there, and looking about 
me, I saw several small sacred buildings, resembling the temple, 
inhabited by the WISE. We went towards one of them, and 
coming to the door accosted the person who dwelt there, and 
told him the occasion and manner of our coming. He said, 
" You are welcome ; enter and be seated, and we will improve 
our acquaintance by discourses respecting wisdom." I viewed 
the building within, and observed that it was divided into two, 
and still was but one ; it was divided into two by a transparent 
wall ; but it appeared as one from its translucence, wlrich was 
like that of the purest crystal, I inquired the reason of this! 
He said, " I am not alone ; my wife is with me, and we are two ; 

Kt still we are not two, but one flesh." But I replied, " I 
ow that you are a wise one ; and what has a wise one or a 
wisdom to do with a woman?" Hereupon our host, becoming 

59 



56 CONJtTGIAL LOVE 

somewhat indignant, changed countenance, and beekined witj 
Ins hand, and lo! instantly other wise ones presented themselves 
from the neighboring buildings, to whom he said humorously, 
" Our stranger here asks, < What has a wise one or a wisdom to 
do with a woman P " At this they smiled and said, " What ^ is 
a wise one or a wisdom without a woman, or without love, a wife 
being the love of a wise man's wisdom ?" Our host then said, 
" Let us now endeavor to improve our acquaintance by some 
discourse respecting wisdom; -and let it be concerning causes, 
and at present concerning the cause of beauty in the female sex." 
Then they spoke in order ; and the first assigned as a cause,, that 
women were created by the Lord's affections of the wisdom of 
men, and the affection of wisdom is essential beauty, A second 
said, that the woman was created by the Lord through the 
wisdom of the man, because from the man ; and that hence she 
is a form of wisdom inspired with love-affection; and since 
love-affection is essential life, a female is the life of wisdom, 
whereas a male is wisdom ; and the life of wisdom is essential 
beauty. A third said, that women have a perception of the 
delights of conjugial love ; and as their whole body is an organ 
of that perception, it must needs be that the h&bitation of the 
delights of conjugal love, with its perception, be beauty. A 
fourth assigned this cause ; that the Lord took away from the 
man beauty and elegance of life, and transferred" it to the 
woman ; and that hence the man, unless he be re-united with 
his beauty and elegance in the woman, is stern, austere, joyless, 
and unlovely ; so one man is wise only for himself, and another 
is foolish : whereas, when a man is united with his beauty and 
elegance of life in a wife, lie becomes engaging, pleasant, active, 
and lovely, and thereby wise. A fifth said, that women wero 
created beauties, not for the sake of themselves, but for the sake 
of the men ; that men, who of themselves are hard, might be 
made soft: that their minds, of themselves grave and seveie, 
might become gentle and cheerful ; and that their hearty of 
themselves colC, might be made warm ; which effects take place 
when they become one flesh with their wives. A s'xth assigned 
as a cause, that the universe was created by the Lord a most 
perfect work ; but that nothing was created in it more perfect 
than a beautiful and elegant woman, in order that man may 
give thanks to the Lord for his bounty herein, and may repay 
it by the reception of wisdom from him. These and many other 
similar observations haying been made, the wife of our host 
appeared beyond the crystal wall, and said to her husband, 
* fc Speak if you please;" and then when he spoke, the life of 
wisdom, from the wife was perceived in his discourse; for in the 
tone of his speech waller 4av^|^^^ testified tcttlio 

truJT Afterlhis we took a vievfof the temple of wisdom, an-J 



AOT ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 56, 57 

also of the paradisiacal scenes which, encompassed it, and being 
thereby filled with joy, we departed, and passed through the 
avenue to the gate, and descended by the way we had ascended. 



ON LOVE TKULY COtf JUGIAL. 



57. THEEE "are y^iitejrarieties PjLfi on JS8}SlJS ^ being 
in no two persons exactly^similar. It "appeal? indeed as if it 
were^ similar with many ; but this appearance arises from corpo- 
real judgement, which, being gross and dull, is little qualified to 
discern aright respecting it. By corporeal j udgement we mean 
the judgement of the mind from the evidence of the external 
senses; but to those whose eyes are opened to see from the 
judgment of the spirit, the differences are manifest; and more 
distinctly to those who are enabled to elevate the sight arising 
from such judgement to a higher degree, which is effected by 
withdrawing it from the senses, and exalting it into a superior 
light; these can at length confirm themselves in their understand- 
ing, and thereby see that conjugial love is never exactly similar 
in any^ two persons. / Nevertheless no one can see the infinite 
varieties of this love in any light of the understanding however 
elevated, unless he first know what is the nature and quality of 
that love in its very essence and integrity, thus what was its 
nature and quality when, together with life, it was implanted in 
man from God. Unless this its state, which was most perfect, 
be known, it is in vain to attempt the discovery of its differences 
by any investigation ; for there is no other fixed point, from 
which as a first principle those differences may be deduced, and 
to which as the focus of their direction they may be referred, 
and thus may appear truly and without fallacy. This is the 
reason why we here undertake to describe that love in its essence ; 
and as it was in this essence when, together with life from God, 
it was infused into man, we undertake to describe it such as ifc 
was in its primeval state ; and as in this state it was truly 
conjugial, therefore we have entitled this section, ON LOVE 
TBULY CONJUGIAL. The description of it shall be given in the 
following order : I. There exists a lov& truly conjugial, which at 
this day is so rare that it is not known what is its quality, and 
scarcely that it ewists. II. This love originates in the marriage 
of good and truth. III. There is a correspondence of this love 
with the marriage of the Lord and the church. IV. 2'his love 
from its origin and correspondence, is celestial, spiritual, holy, 
pure, and clean, above every other love imparted by the Lord 
to the angels of heaven and the men of the church. V. It 
is also the foundation love of all celestial and spiritual loves, ana 



57 59 CONJUGIAL LOYE 

thence of all natural loves. VI. Into this love are collected all 
joys and delights from first to last. VII. None however com* 
into this love, andean be in it, but those who approach the Lord, 
and love the truths of the church and practise its goods. 
VIII. This love was the love of loves with the ancients, who 
lived in the golden, silver, and copper ages ; lut afterwards it 
successively departed. We now proceed to the explanation of 
each article. 

58. I. THERE EXISTS A LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, WHICH AT 

THIS DAY IS SO RARE THAT IS NOT KNOWN WHAT IS JTS 

QUALITY, AND SCARCELY THAT IT EXISTS. That there exists 
such conjugial love as is described in the following pages, may 
indeed be acknowledged from the first state of that love, when it 
insinuates itself, and enters into the hearts of a youth and a 
virgin ; thus from its influence on those who begin to love one 
alone of the sex, and to desire to be joined therewith in marriage ; 
and still more at the time of courtship and the interval which 
precedes the marriage-ceremony ; and lastly during the marriage- 
ceremony and some days after it. At such times who does not 
acknowledge and consent to the following positions ; that this 
love is the foundation of all loves, and also that into it are col- 
lected all joys and delights from first to last ? And who does 
not know that, after this season of pleasure, the satisfactions 
thereof successively pass away and depart, till at length they are 
scarcely sensible ? In the latter case, if it be said as before, 
that this love is the foundation of all loves, and that into it are 
collected all joys and delights, the positions are neither agreed to 
nor acknowledged, and possibly it is asserted that they are non- 
sense or incomprehensible mysteries. From these considerations 
it is evident, that primitive marriage love bears a resemblance to 
love truly conjugial, and presents it to view in a certain image. 
The reason of which is, because then the love of the sex, which 
is unchaste, is put away, and in its place the love of one of the 
sex, which is truly conjugial and chaste, remains implanted: in 
this case, who does not regard other women with indifference, 
and the one to whom he is united with love and affection $ 

59. The reason why love truly conjugial is notwithstanding 
so rare, that its quality is not known, and scarcely its existence, 
is, because the state of pleasurable gratifications before and at 
the time of marriage, is afterwards changed into a state of indif- 
ference arising from an insensibility to such gratifications. The 
causes of this change of state are too numerous to be here ad- 
duced; but they shall be adduced in a future part of this work, 
Then we come to explain in their order the causes of coldnesseSj 
separations, and divorces; from which it will be seen, that with 
the generality at this day this image of conjugial love is so far 
abolished, and with the image the knowledge thereof, that its 
quality and even its existence are scarcely known. It is well 
62 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 59, 60 

known, that every man by birth is merely corporeal, and that 
from corporeal he becomes natural more and more interiorly, 
and thus rational, and at length spiritual. The reason why th'is 
is effected progressively is, because the corporeal principle is like 
ground, wherein things natural, rational,* and spiritual are im- 
planted in their order ; thus a man becomes more and more a 
man. The case is nearly similar when he enters into marriage ; 
on this occasion a man becomes a more complete man, because 
he is joined with a consort, with whom he acts as one man : but 
this, in the first state spoken of above, is effected only in a sort 
of image : in like manner he then commences from what is cor- 
poreal, and proceeds to what is natural as to conjugial life, and 
thereby to a conjunction into a one. Those who, in this case, love 
corporeal natural things, and rational things only as grounded 
therein, cannot be conjoined to a consort as into a one, except 
as to those externals : and when those externals fail, cold takes 
possession of the internals ; in consequence whereof the delights 
of that love are dispersed and driven away, as from the mind so 
from the body, and afterwards as from the body so from the 
mind ; and this until there is nothing left of the remembrance of 
the primeval state of their marriage, consequently no knowledge 
respecting it. Noj^smce^ tftQ generality *of 

persons at this day,TI is evident that love truly conjugial is not 
knowiras'to its quality, and scarcely as to its existence. If Is 
otherwise with those who are spiritual. With them the first 
state is an initiation into lasting satisfactions, T$j^i^ 
degc^.e, in proportion as the spiritual rational principle of the 
mind, and thence the natural sensual principle of the body, in 
each p^arty, conjoin and unite themselves with the same prin- 
ciples in the other party ; but such instances are rare. +. - 

60. II. THIS LOVE ORIGINATES IN THE MABRIAGE OF GOOD 

AND TEUTH. That all things in the universe have relation to 
good and truth, is acknowledged by every intelligent man, be- 
cause it is a universal truth ; that likewise in every thing in the 
universe good is conjoined with truth, and .truth with good, can- 
not but be acknowledged, because this also is a universal truth, 
which agrees with the former. The reason why all things in the 
universe have relation to good and truth, and why good is con- 
joined with truth, and truth with good, is, because each proceeds 
iVoiii^the Ix)r$j and ,they-procead,rom,Mm asicme. The two 
things which proceed from the Lord, are love and wisdom, be- 
cause these are himself, thus from himself; and all things relating 
to love are called good, or goods, and all things relating to wis- 
dom are called true, or truths ; and as these two proceed from 
him as the creator, it follows that they are in the things created. 
This may be illustrated by heat and light which proceed from tht 
sun : from them all things appertaining to the earth are derived, 
which germinate according to their presence and conjunction; 

63 



gO 63 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

and natural heat corresponds to spiritual heat, which is love, as 
natural light corresponds to spiritual light, which is wisdom. 




ritual,"" and "holy origin. "In order to see that the origin of 
conjugial love is from the marriage of good and truth, it may 
be expedient in this place briefly to premise somewhat on the 
subject. It was said just above, that in every created thing 
there exists a conjunction of good and truth ; and there is no 
conjunction unless it be reciprocal ; for conjunction on one part, 
and not on the other in its turn, is dissolved of itself. Now aa 
there is a conjunction of good and truth, and this is reciprocal, 
it follows that there is a truth of good, or truth grounded in 
good, and that there is a good of truth, or good grounded in 
truth ; that the truth of good, or truth grounded in good, is in 
the male, and that it is the very essential male (or masculine) 
principle, and that the good of truth, or good grounded in truth, 
is in the female, and that it is the very^ essential female (or femi- 
nine) principle ; also that there is a conjugial union between those 
two, will be seen in the following section : it is here only men- 
tioned in order to give some preliminary idea on the subject 
62. III. THERE is A CORRESPONDENCE OF THIS LOVS WITH 

THE MARRIAGE OF THE LORD AND THE CHURCH ; that is, that as 

the Lord loves the church, and is desirous that the church should 
love him, so a husband and a wife mutually love each other* 
That there is a correspondence herein, is well known in the 
Christian world : but the nature of that correspondence as yet ia 
not known ; therefore we will explain it presently in a particular 
paragraph. It is here mentioned in order to shew that conjugial 
love is celestial, spiritual, and holy, because it corresponds to the 
celestial, spiritual, and holy marriage of the Lord and the church. 
This correspondence also follows as a consequence of conjugial 
love's originating ia the marriage of good and truth, spoken of 
in the preceding article ; because the marriage of good and truth 
constitutes the church with man : for the marriage of good and 
truth is the same as the marriage of charity and faith ; since 
good relates to charity, and truth to faith. That this marriage 
constitutes the church must at once be acknowledged, because 
it is a universal truth ; and every universal truth is acknowledged 
as soon as it is heard, in consequence of the Lord's influx and at 
the same time of the confirmation of heaven. Now since the 
church is the Lord's, because it is from him, and since conju- 
gial love corresponds to the marriage of the Lord and the church, 
it follows that this love is from the Lord. 

63. But in what manner the church from the Lord is formed 
with two married partners, and how conjugial love is formed 
04 . 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 63 65 

thereby, shall be illustrated in the paragraph spoken of above : 
we will at present only observe, that the church from the Lord 
is formed in the husband, and through the husband in the wife ; 
and that when it is formed in each, it is a full church ; for in 
this ease is effected a full conjunction of good and truth ; and the 
conjunction of jSjood and truth constitutes the church. That the 
unitinglnclination, which Ts~c6njugfal love, is "in 'a similar degree 
with the conjunction of good and truth, which is the church, will 
be proved by convincing arguments in what follows in the series. 

64. IV. THIS LOVE, FROM ITS ORIGIN AND CORRESPONDENCE, 
18 CELESTIAL, SPIRITUAL, HOLY, PURE, AND CLEAN", ABOVE EVERY 
OTHER LOVE IMPARTED BY THE LORD TO THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN 

AND THE MEN OF THE CHURCH. That such is the nature and 
quality of conjugial love from its origin, which is the marriage of 
good and truth, was briefly shewn above ; but the subject was 
then barely touched upon : in like manner that such is the 
nature and quality of that love, from its correspondence with the 
marriage of the ifljji $tt&4Jje* church. These two marriages, 
from which conjugial love, as a slip or shoot, descends, are essen- 
tially holy , therefore if it be received from its author, the Lord, 
holiness from him follows of consequence, which continually 
cleanses and purifies it : in this case, if there be in the man s 
will a desire and tendency to it, this love becomes daily and con- 
tinually cleaner and purer. Conjugial love is called celestial and 
spiritual because it is with the angels of heaven ; celestial, as 
with the angels of the highest heaven, these being called celes- 
tial angels ; and spiritual, as with the angels beneath that hea- 
ven, these being called "spiritual angels. Those angels are so 
called, because the celestial are loves, and thence wisdoms, and 
the spiritual are wisdoms and thence loves ; similar thereto is 
their conjugial principle. Now as conjugial love is with the 
angels of both the superior and the inferior heavens, as was also 
shewn in the first paragraph concerning marriages in heaven, it 
is manifest that it is holy and pure. The reason why this love 
in its essence, considered in regard to its origin, is holy and 
pure above every other love with angels and men, is, because it is 
as it were the head of the other loves : concerning its excellence 
something shall be said in the following article. 

65. V. IT IS ALSO THE FOUNDATION LOVE OF ALL CELESTIAL 
1ND SPIRITUAL LOVES, AND THENCE OF ALL^X^AL LOVES. The 

reason why conjugial love considered in its essence is the founda- 
tion love of all the loves of heaven and the church, is, because it 
originates in the marriage of good and truth, and from this mar- 
riage proceed all the loves which constitute heaven and the 
church with man : the good of this marriage constitutes love, and 
its truth constitutes wisdom; and when love draws near to wis- 
dom, or joins itself therewith, then love becomes love ; and when 

5 65 



65 67 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

wisdom in its turn draws near to lore, and joins ftself therewith, 
then wisdom becomes wisdom. Love truly conjugial is the con- 
junction of love and wisdom. Two married partners, between or 
in whom this love subsists, are an image and form of it : all like* 
wise in the heavens, where faces are the genuine types of the 
affections of every one's love, are likenesses of it ; for, as was 
shewn above, it pervades them in the whole and in every part. 
Now as two married partners are an image and form of this love, 
it follows that every love which proceeds from the form of essen- 
tial love itself, is a resemblance thereof; therefore if conjugial 
love be celestial and spiritual, the loves proceeding from it are 
also celestial and spiritual. Conjugial love therefore is ^as a 
parent, and all other loves are as the offspring. Hence it is, 
that from the marriages of the angels in the heavens are pro- 
duced spiritual offspring, which are those of love and wisdom, 
Qr of good and truth ; concerning which production, see above, 
n. 51, 52. 

66. The same is evident from man's having be.en created for 
this love, and from his formation afterwards by means of it. 
The male was created to become wisdom grounded in the love oi 
growing wise, and the female was created to become the love oi 
the male grounded in his wisdom, and consequently was formed 
according thereto ; from which consideration it is manifest, that 
two marriejd^p^rtne.ri arjOSkjfii^foiix^- aw3 icaages of the 
5oamage"of love and wisdom^^.o^good^BdJ^uth. It is well 
to be observed/ that there is not any good or truth which is not 
in a substance as in its subject : there are no abstract goods and 
truths ; for, having no abode or habitation, they no where exist, 
neither can they appear as airy unfixed principles ; therefore in 
such case they are mere entities, concerning which reason seems 
to itself to think abstractedly; but still it cannot conceive of 
them except as annexed to subjects : for every human idea, how- 
ever elevated, is substantial, that is, affixed to substances. It is 
moreover to be observed, that there is no substance without a 
form; an unformed substance not being any thing, because 
nothing can be predicated of it; and a subject without predicates 
is also an entity which has no existence in reason. These philo- 
sophical considerations are adduced in order to shew still more 
clearly, that two married partners who are principled in love 
truly conjugial, are actually forms of the marriage of good and 
truth, or of love and wisdom. 

67. Since natural loves flow from spiritual, and spiritual 
from celestial, therefore it is said that conjugial love is the foun- 
dation love of all celestial and spiritual loves, and thence of all 
natural loves. / ljft(gral loves *g|^^ 

-JWddSJHHJ^^ 

; and such as are the 

QQ 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS 6T 69 

loves, it is evident in what order they follow and are present with 
man. "When they are in this order, then the natural loves live 
from^the spiritual, and the spiritual from the celestial, and all 
in this order from the Lord, in whom they originate. 

68. VI. INTO THIS LOVE ARE COLLECTED ALL JOYS AND 
DELIGHTS FEOH FIRST TO LAST. All delights whatever, of which 
a man (homo] has any perception, are delights of his love ; the 
love manifesting itself, yea, existing and living thereby. It is 
well known that the delights are exalted in proportion as" the love 
is exalted, and also in proportion as the incident affections touch 
the^rnling love more nearly. Now as conjugial love is the foun- 
dation love of all good loves, and as it is inscribed on all the 
parts and principles of man, even the most particular, as was 
shewn above, it follows that its delights exceed the delights of all 
other loves, and also that it gives delight to the other loves, 
according to its presence and conjunction with them ; for it 
expands the inmost principles of the mind, and at the same time 
the inmost principles of the body, as the delicious current of its 
fountain flows through and opens them. The reason why all 
delights from first to last are collected into this love, is on 
account of the ^ugerk>r excellenice^of its use, which is the pro- 
.pagation of the Human race^ancl tfience of the angelic heaven ; 
and as this use was the chief end of creation, it follows that all 
the beatitudes, satisfactions, delights, pleasantnesses, and plea- 
sures, which the Lord the Creator could possibly confer upon 
man, are collected into this his love, That delights follow use, 
and are also communicated to man accorSngto tEe love thereof, 
is manifest from the delights of the five senses, seeing, hearing, 
smelling, taste, and touch : each of these has its delights with 
variations according to the specific uses of each ; 3$[&S$ then must 
be the deH^t annexed to the sense of conjugial love, the use oi 

^djjuiE^ ..... ' 

69. I am aware that few* will acknowledge that all joys and 
delights from first to last are collected into conjugial love; 
because love truly conjugial, into which they are collected, is at 
this day so rare that its" quality is not known, and scarcely its 
existence, agreeably to what was explained and confirmed above, 
n. 58, 59; for such joys and delights exist only in genuine con- 
iugial love ; and as this is so rare on earth, it is impossible to 
describe its super-eminent felicities any otherwise than from the 
mouth of angels, because they are principled in it. They have 
declared, that the inmost delights of this love, which are delights 
of the soul, into which the conjugial principle of love and wis- 
dom, or of good and truth from the Lord, first flows, are im- 
perceptible and thence ineffable, because they are the delights of 

ajijd^^ ; but that in their descent they 

^imofe^na more perceptible ; in the superior principles of 
the mind as beatitudes 3 in the inferior as satisfactions, in the 

67 







g{* 71 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

breast as delights thence derived; and that from the breast they 
diffuse themselves into every part of the body, and at length 
unite themselves in ultimates and become the delight of delights. 
Moreover the angels have related wonderful things respecting 
these delights ; adding further, that their varieties in the souls 
of conjugial pairs, and from their souls in their minds, and 
from tfieir minds in their breasts, are infinite and also eternal ; 
that they are exalted according to the prevalence of wisdom 
with the husband ; and this, because they live to eternity in the 
bloom of their age, and because they know no greater blessed- 
ness than to grow wiser and wiser. But a fuller account of these 
delights, as given by the angels, may be seen in the MEMORABLE 
RELATIONS, especially in those added to some of the following 
chapters. 

70. VII. FOOT HOWEVER COME INTO THIS LOVE, AND CAN 
REMAIN IN IT, BUT THOSE WHO APPROACH THE LOKD, AND LOVE 
THE TRUTHS OF THE CHURCH AND PRACTISE ITS GOODS. The rea- 

son why none come into that love but those who approach the 
Lord, is, because monogamical marriages, which are of one hus- 
band with one wife, correspond to the marriage of the Lord and 
the church, and because such marriages originate in the mar- 
riage of good and truth ; on which subject, see above, n. 60 and 
52. That from this origin and correspondence it follows, that 
love truly conjugial is from the Lord, and exists only with those 
who come directly to him, cannot be fully confirmed unless these 
two arcana be specifically treated of, as shall be done in the 
chapters which immediately follow; one of which will treat on 
the origin of conjugial love as derived from the marriage of good 
and truth, and the other on the marriage of the Lord and the 
church, and on its correspondence. That it hence follows, that 
conjugial love with man (homo) is according to the state of the 
church with him, will also be seen in those chapters. 

71. The reason why none can be principled in love truly con- 
jugial but those who receive it from the Lord, that is, who come 
directly to him, and by derivation from him live the life of the 
church, is, because this love, considered^ in its origin and corre- 
spondence, is^^estial,*spiritual,OiQJ^p^fe and"daaji, above 
every love implanted in the angels of heaven and the men of the 
church ; as was shewn above, n. 64: ; and these its distinguishing 
characters and qualities cannot possibly exist, except with those 
who are conjoined to the Lord, and by him are consociated with 
the angels or heaven; for these shun extra-conjugial loves, which 
are conjunctions with others than their own conjugial partner, as 
they would shun the loss of the soul and the lakes of hell ; and 
in proportion as married partners shun such conjunctions, even 
as to the libidinous desires of the will and the intentions thence 
derived, so far love truly ccnjugial is purified with them, and 
becomes successively spiritual, first during their abode on earth, 

68 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 71 73 

and afterwards in heaven. It is not however possible that any 
love should become perfectly pure either with men or with angels; 
consequently neither can this love : nevertheless, since the inten- 
tion of the will is what the Lord principally regards, therefore so 
far as any one is in this intention, and perseveres in it, so far he 
'.s initiated into its purity and sanctity, and successively advances 
therein. The reason why none can be principled in spiritual con- 
jugial love, but those who are of the above description by virtue 
of conjunction with the Lord, is, because heaven is in this love ; 
and the natural man, whose conjugial love derives its pleasure 
only from the flesh, cannot approach to heaven nor to any 
angel, no, nor to any man principled in this love, it being the 
foundation of all celestial and spiritual loves ; which may be 
seen above, n. 65 67. That this is the case, has been confirmed 
to me by experience. I have seen genii in the spiritual world, 
who were in a state of preparation for hell, approaching to an 
angel while he was being entertained by his consort ; and at a 
distance, as they approached, they became like furies, and sought 
out caverns and ditches as asylums, into which they cast them- 
selves. That wicked spirits love what is similar to their affection, 
however unclean it is, and hold in aversion the spirits of heaven, 
as what is dissimilar, because it is pure, may be concluded from 
what was said in the PRELIMINARY MEMORAJBLE RELATION, n. 10. 

72. The reason why those who love the truths of the church 
and practise its goods, come into this love and are capable of 
remaining in it, is, because no others are received by the 
Lord ; for these are in conjunction with him, and thereby are 
capable of being kept in that love by influence from him. The 
two constituents of the church and heaven in man (homo) are 
the truth qf/aith and the good of life ; the truth of faith con- 
stitutes the Lord's presence, and the good of life according to 
the truths of faith constitutes conjunction with him, and thereby 
the church and heaven. The reason why the truth of faith con- 
stitutes the Lord's presence, is, because it relates to light, spi- 
ritual light being nothing else ; and the reason why the good of 
life constitutes conjunction, is, because it relates to heat ; and 
spiritual heat is nothing but the good of life, for it is love ; and 
the good of life originates in love ; and it is well known, that all 
light, even that of winter, causes presence, and that heat united 
to light causes conjunction; for gardens and shrubberies appear 
iu all degrees of light, but ttiey So not bear flowers and fruits 

"unless wl^ H J|^at.jowJ^e]i-ta.iigfet From these consider!? 
lionsTEe^conclusioii is obvious, that those are not gifted by the 
Lord with love truly conjugial, who merely know the truths of 
the church, but those whc know them and practise their good.. 

73. VIII. THIS LOVE* WAS THE LOVE OF LOVES WITH THE 

ANCIENTS, WHO LIVED IN THE GOLDEN, SILVER, AND COPPER 

AGES. That conjugial love was the love of loves with the most 

69 



73 75 CONJtJGIAL LOVE 

ancient and tiie ancient people, who lived in the ages thus 
named, cannot be known from historical records, because their 
writings are not extant ; and there is no account given ot them 
except by writers in succeeding ages, who mention thorn, and 
describe the purity and integrity of their lives, and also the suc- 
cessive decrease of such purity and integrity, resembling^ the 
debasement of gold to iron ; but an account of the last or iron 
ao-e which commenced from the time of those writers, may in 
gome measure be gathered from the historical records of the lives 
of some of their kings, judges, and wise men, who were called 
tophi, in Greece and other countries. That this age ^however 
should not endure, as iron endures in itself, but that ^ it should 
be like iron mixed with clay, which do not cohere, is foretold 
by Daniel, chap. ii. 43. Now as the golden, silver, and copper 
ao-es passed away before the time when writing came into use, 
and thus it is impossible on earth to acquire any knowledge con- 
cernino- their marriages, it has pleased the Lord to unfold to me 
such knowledge by a spiritual way, by conducting me to ^ the 
heavens inhabited by those most ancient people, that I might 
learn from their own mouths the nature and quality of their 
marriages during their abode here on- earth in their several ages : 
for all, who from the beginning of creation have departed by 
death out of the natural world, are in the spiritual world, and as 
to their loves resemble what they were when alive in the natural 
world, and continue such to eternity. As the particulars of this 
knowledge are worthy to be known and related, and tend to con- 
firm the sanctity of marriages, I am desirous to make them 
public as they were shown me in the spirit when awake, and 
were afterwards recalled to my remembrance by an angel, and 
thus described. And as they are from the spiritual world, like 
the other accounts annexed to each chapter, I am desirous to 
arrange them so as to form six MEMOBABLB DELATIONS according 

to the progressions of the several periods of time. 

r ** * * # # # # * '- 

74. THESE six MEMORABLE DELATIONS from the spiritua 
world, concerning conjugial love, discover the nature and quality 
of that love in the earliest times and afterwards, and also at the 
present day ; whence it appears that that love has successively 
fallen away from its sanctity and purity, until it became adul- 
terous ; but that nevertheless there is a hope of its being brough 
back again to its primeval or ancient sanctity." 

75. THE FIRST MEMQBABLE DELATION. On a time, while J 
was meditating on conjugial love, my mind was seized with a de 
sire of knowing what had been the nature and quality ot that love 
among those who lived in the GOLDEN AGE, and afcer wards among 
those who lived in the following ages, which have their names 
from silver, copper, and iron : and as I knew that all who lived 
well in those ages are in the heavens, I prayed to the Lord that 

70 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 74 

1 might be allowed to converse with them and be Informed : and 
lo ! an angel presented himself and said, " I am sent by the 
Lord to be your guide and companion: I will first lead and 
attend you to those who lived in the first age or period of time, 
which is called golden :" and he said, " The way to them is dif* 
fieult ; it lies through a shady forest, which none can pass unless 
he receive a guide from the Lord." I was in the spirit, and 
prepared myself for the journey ; and we turned our faces towards 
the east ; and as we advanced I saw a mountain, whose height 
extended beyond the region of the clouds. We passed a great 
wilderness, and came to the forest planted with various kinds of 
trees and rendered shady by their thickness, of which the angel 
had advertised me. The forest was divided by several narrow 
paths ; and the angel said, that according to the number of those 
paths are the windings and intricacies of error : and that unless 
his eyes were opened by the Lord, so as to see olives entwined 
with vine tendrils, and his steps were directed from olive to olive, 
the traveller would miss his way, and fall into the abodes of 
Tartarus, which are round about at the sides. This forest is of 
such a nature, to the end that the passage may be guarded ; for 
none but a primeval nation dwells upon that mountain. After 
we had entered the forest, our eyes were opened, and we saw 
here and there olives entwined with vines, from which hung 
bunches of grapes of a blue or azure color, and the olives were 
ranged in continual wreaths ; we therefore made various circuits 
as they presented themselves to our view ; and at length we saw 
a grove of tall cedars and some eagles perched on their branches ; 
on seeing which the angel said, " We are now on the mountain 
not far from its summit:" so we went forward, and lo! behind 
the grove was a circular plain, where there were feeding he and 
she-lambs, which were representative forms of the state of inno- 
cence and peace of the inhabitants of the mountain. We passed 
over this plain, and lo ! we saw tabernacles, to the number of 
seve ,al thousands in front on each side in every direction as far 
as the eye could reach. And the angel said, " We are now in 
the camp, where are the armies of the Lord Jehovah ; for so 
they call themselves and their habitations. These most ancient 
people, while they were in the world, dwelt in tabernacles ; there- 
fore now also they dwell in the same. But let us bend our way 
to the south, where the wiser of them live, that we may meet 
some one to converse with." In going alon^ I saw at a distance 
three boys and three girls sitting at a door of a certain tent ; 
but as we approached, the boys and girls appeared like men and 
women of a middle stature. The angel then said, " All the 
inhabitants of this mountain appear at a distance like infants, 
because they are in a state of innocence ; and infancy is the 
appearance of innocence." The men on seeing us hastened to- 
wards us and said, " Whence are you ; and how came you here 

71 



75 COtf JI7GIAL LOVE 

your faces are not like those of our mountain." But the angel 
in reply told them how, by permission, we had had access 
through the forest, and what was the cause of our coming. On 
Hearing this, one of the three men invited and introduced us into 
his tabernacle. The man was dressed in a blue robe and a tunic 
of white wool : and his wife had on a purple gown, with a 
stomacher under it of fine linen wrought in needle-work. And 
as my thought was influenced by a desire of knowing the state 01 
marriages among the most ancient people, I looked by turns on 
the husband and the wife, and observed as it were a unity of 
their souls in their faces ; and I said, " You are one :" and the 
man answered, " We are one ; her life is in me, and mine in 
her ; we are two bodies, but one soul : the union between us is 
like that of the two viscera in the breast, which are called the 
heart and the lungs ; she is my heart and I am her lungs ; but 
as by the heart we here mean love, and by the lungs wisdom, she 
is the love of my wisdom, and I am the wisdom of her love ; 
therefore her love from without veils my wisdom, and my wis- 
dom from within enters into her love : hence, as you said, there 
is an appearance of the unity of pur souls in our faces." I then 
asked, "If such a union exists, is it possible for you to look at 
any other woman than your own ?" He replied, " It is possible , 
but as my wife is united to my soul, we both look together, and 
in this case nothing of lust can enter ; for while I behold the 
wives of others, I behold them by my own wife, whom alone I 
love : and as my own wife has a perception of all my iuclina 
tions, she. as an intermediate, directs my thoughts and removes 
every thing discordant, and therewith impresses cold and horroi 
at every thing unchaste ; therefore it is as impossible for us tc 
look unchastely at the wife of any other of our society, as it is tc 
look from the shades of Tartarus to the light of our heaven 
therefore neither have we any idea of thought, and still less any 
expression of speech, to denote the allurements of libidinous 
love." He could not pronounce the word whoredom, because 
the chastity of their heaven forbade it. Hereupon my conduct- 
ing angel said to me, " You hear now that the speech of the 
angels of this heaven is the speech of wisdom, because they speak 
from causes." After this, as I looked around, I sawlfeeir taber- 
nacle as it were overlaid with gold ; and I asked, a Whence is 
this ?" He replied, " It is in consequence of a flaming light, 
which, like gold, glitters, irradiates, and glances on the curtaina 
of our tabernacle while we are conversing about conjugial love; 
for the heat from our sun, which in its essence is love, on such 
occasions bares itself, and tinges the light, which in its essence ia 
wisdom, with its golden color; and this happens because conjugial 
love in its origin is the sport of wisdom and love ; for the man 
was born to be wisdom, and the woman to be the love of the 
man's wisdom : hence spring the delights of that sportj in apJ 
72 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 75, 76 

derived from conjugial love between us and our wives. We have 
seen clearly for thousands of years in our heaven, that those de- 
lights, as to quantity, degree, and intensity, are excellent and 
eminent according to our worship of the Lord Jehovah, from 
whom flows that heavenly union or marriage, which is the union 
and marriage of love and wisdom." As he said this, I saw a 
great light upon the hill in the middle of the tabernacles ; and I 
inquired, "Whence is that light?" And he said, "It is from 
the sanctuary of the tabernacle of oar worship." I asked whe- 
ther I might approach it ; to which he assented. I approached 
therefore, and saw the tabernacle without and within, answering 
exactly to the description of the tabernacle which was built for 
the sons of Israel in the wilderness ; the form of which was 
shewed to Moses on Mount Sinai, Exod. xxv. 40 ; chap. xxvi. 
30. I then asked, " What is within in that sanctuary, from 
which so great a light proceeds?" He replied, "It is a tablet 
with this inscription, THE COVENANT BETWEEN JEHOYAH AND 
THE HEAVENS :" ne said no more. And as by this time we were 
ready to depart, I asked, " Did any of you, during your abode 
in the natural world, live with more than one wife ?" He replied, 
" I know not one ; for we could not think of more. We have 
been told by those who had thought of more, that instantly the 
heavenly blessedness of their souls withdrew from their inmost 
principles to the extreme parts of their bodies, even to the nails, 
and together therewith the honorable badges of manhood ; when 
this was perceived they were banished the land." On saying 
this, the man ran to his tabernacle, and returned with a pome- 
granate, in which there was abundance of seeds of gold : and he 
fave it me, and I brought it away with me, as a sign that we 
ad been with those who had lived in the golden age. And then, 
after a salutation of peace, we took our leave, and returned 
home, 

76, THE SECOND MEMORABLE DELATION. The next day the 
same angel came to me, and said, " Do you wish me to lead 
and attend you to the people who lived in the SILVES AG-E OB 
PERIOD, that we may hear from them concerning the marriages 
of their time?" And he added, "Access to these also can 
only be obtained by the Lord's favor and protection." I was in 
the spirit as before, and accompanied my conductor. We first 
came to a hill on the confines between the east and the south ; 
and while we were ascending it, he shewed me a great extent of 
country : we saw at a distance an eminence like a mountain, be- 
tween which and the hill on which wie stood was a valley, and 
behind the valley a plain, and from the plain a rising ground of 
easy ascent. "We descended the hill intending to pass through 
the valley, and we saw here and there on each side pieces of 
wood and stone, carved into the figures of men, and of various 
oeasts, birds, and fishes ; and I asked the angel what they meant, 

73 



LOVE 



and whether they were idols? He replied, < By no means: they 
are representative forms of various moral virtues and spiritual 
truths. The people of that age were acquainted with the science 
of correspondences ; and as every man, beast, bird, and fish, cor- 
responds to some quality, therefore each particular carved figure 
represents partially some virtue or truth, and several together 
represent virtue itself, or truth, in a common extended iorm. 
These are what in Egypt were called hieroglyphics. ^ We pro- 
ceeded through the valley, and as we entered the plain, lo ! we 
saw horses and chariots ; horses variously harnessed arid capa- 
risoned, and chariots of different forms ; some carved in the 
shape of eagles, some like whales, and some like stags with horns, 
and like unicorns ; and likewise beyond them some carts, and 
stables round about at the sides ; and as we approached, both 
horses and chariots disappeared, and instead thereof we saw men 
(homines), in pairs, walking, talking, and reasoning. And the 
angel said to me, " The different species of horses, chariots, and 
stables, seen at a distance, are appearances of the rational intel- 
ligence of the men of that period ; for a horse, by correspondence, 
signifies the understanding of truth, a chariot, its doctrine, and 
stables, instructions: you know that in this world all things 
appear according to correspondences." But we passed by these 
things, and ascended by a long acclivity, and at length saw a 
city, which we entered ; and in walking through the streets and 
places of public resort, we viewed the houses : they were so 
many palaces built of marble, having steps of alabaster in front, 
and at the sides of the steps pillars of jasper : we saw also tem- 
ples of precious stone of a sapphire and lazure color. And the 
angel said to me, " Their houses are of stone, because stones 
signify natural truths, and precious stones spiritual truths; and 
all those who lived in the silver age had intelligence grounded 
in spiritual truths, and thence in natural truths : silver also has 
a similar signification." In taking a view of the city, we saw 
here and there consorts in pairs: and as they were husbands and 
wives, we expected that some of them would invite us to their 
houses ; and while we were in this expectation, as we were pass- 
ing by, we were invited by two into their house, and we as- 
cended the steps and entered ; and the angel, taking upon him 
the part of speaker, explained to them the occasion of our com- 
ing to this heaven ; informing them that it was for the sake of 
instruction concerning marriages among the ancients, "of whom," 
Bays he, " you in this heaven are a part." They said, " We 
were from a people in Asia; and the chief pursuit of our age 
was the truths whereby we had intelligence. This was the occu- 
pation of our souls and minds ; but our bodily senses were 
engaged in representations of truths in form ; and the science 
of correspondences conjoined the sensual things of our bodies 
with the perceptions of our minds, and procured us intelligence." 

t*T A 



AJTD ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 76 

On hearing this, the angel asked them to give some account of 
their marriages : and the husband said, " There is a corre- 
spondence between spiritual marriage, which is that of truth with 
good, and natural marriage, which is that of a man with one 
wife ; and as we have studied correspondences, we have seen 
that the church, with its truths and goods, cannot at all exist 
but with those who live in love truly conjugial with one wife : 
for tie marriage of good and truth constitutes the church with 
man : therefore all we in this heaven say, that the husband is 
truth, and the wife the good thereof ; and that good cannot love 
any truth but its own, neither can truth in return love any good 
but its own : if any other were loved, internal marriage, wnich 
constitutes the church, would perish, and there would remain 
only external marriage, to which idolatry, and not the church, 
corresponds; therefore marriage with one wife we call sacri- 
mony ; but if it should have place with more than one among us, 
we should call it sacrilege." As he said this, we were intro- 
duced into an ante-chamber, where there were several devices on 
the walls, and little images as it were of molten silver ; and I 
inquired, "What are these?" They said, "They are pictures 
and forms representative of several qualities, characters, and de- 
lights, relating to conjugial love. These represent unity of souls, 
these conjunction of minds, these harmony of bosoms, these the 
delights thence arising." While we were viewing these things, 
we saw as it were a rainbow on the wall, consisting of three 
colors, purple (or red), blue and white ; and we observed how 
the purple passed the blue, and tinged the white with an azure 
color, and that the latter color flowed back through the blue into 
the purple, and elevated the purple into a kind of flaming lustre : 
and the husband said to me, " Do you understand all this ?" I 
replied, u Instruct me :" and he said, u The purple color, from 
its correspondence, signifies the conjugial love of the wife, the 
white the intelligence of the husband, the blue the beginning of 
conjugial love in the husband's perception from the wife, and the 
azure, with which the white was tinged, signifies conjugial love in 
this case in the husband ; and this latter color flowing back 
through the blue into the purple, and elevating the purple into a 
kind of flaming lustre, signifies the conjugial love of the husband 
flowing back to the wife. Such things are represented on these 
walls, while from meditating on conjugal love, its mutual, suc- 
cessive, and simultaneous union, we view with eager attention 
the rainbows which are there painted." Hereupon I observed, 
" These things are more than mystical at this day ; for they are 
appearances representative of the arcana of the conjugial love of 
one man with one wife." He replied, " They are so ; yet to us 
Jin our heaven they are not arcana, and consequently neither are 
they mystical." As he said this, there appeared at a distance a 
chaViot drawn by small white horses ; on seeing which the angel 



76, 77 CONJUGIAL 

said, a That chariot is a sign for us to take our leave ;" and then, 
as Tve were descending the steps, our host gave us a bunch of 
white grapes hanging to the vine leaves: and lo! the leaves be- 
came silver ; and we brought them down with us for a sign that 
we had conversed with the people of the silver age. 

77. THE THIED MEMORABLE RELATION. The next day, my 
conducting and attendant angel came to^ne and said, "Make 
ready, and let us go to the heavenly inhabitants in the west, who 
are from the men that lived in the third period, or in the copper 
age. Their dwellings are from the south by the west towards 
the north ; but they do not reach into the north.' 5 ^ Having 
made myself ready, I attended him, and we entered their heaven 
on the southern quarter. There was a magnificent grove^of 
palm trees and laurels. "We passed through this, and im- 
mediately on the confines of the west we saw giants, double the 
size of ordinary men. They asked us, " Who let you in through 
the grove?" The angel said, "The God of heaven." They 
replied, " We are guards to the ancient western heaven ; but 
pass on." We passed on, and from a rising ground we saw a 
mountain rising to the clouds, and between us and the mountain 
a number of villages, with gardens, groves, and plains inter- 
mixed. We passed through the villages and came to the moun- 
tain, which we ascended ; and lo ! its summit was not a point 
but a plain, on which was a spacious and extensive city. All 
the houses of the city were built of the wood of the pine-tree, 
and their roofs consisted of joists or rafters; and I asked, " Why 
are the houses here built of wood ?" The angel replied, " Because 
wood signifies natural good ; and the men of the third age of 
the earth were principled in this good ; and as copper ^also 
signifies natural good, therefore the age in which they lived 
the ancients named from copper. Here are also sacred build- 
ings constructed of the wood of the olive, and in the middle 
of them is the sanctuary, where is deposited in an ark the 
Word that was given to the inhabitants *of Asia before the 
Israelitish Word ; the historical books of which are called the 
WAES OF JEHOVAH, and the prophetic books, ENUNCIATIONS ; 
both mentioned by Moses, Numb. xxi. verses 14, 15, and 27 30. 
This Word at this day is lost in the kingdoms of Asia, and is 
only preserved in Great Tartary." Then the angel led me to one 
of the sacred buildings, which we looked into, and saw in the 
middle of it the sanctuary, the whole in the brightest light ; and 
the angel said, " This light is from that ancient Asiatic Word : 
for all divine truth in the heavens gives forth light/' As we 
were leaving the sacred building, we were informed that it had 
been reported in the city that two strangers had arrived there; 
and that they were to be examined as to whence they came, and 
what was their business; and immediately one of the public 
officers came running towards us, and took us for examination 

76 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS, 77 

before the judges: and on being asked whence we came, and 
what was our business, we replied, " We hare passed the grove 
of palm-trees, and also the abodes of the giants, the guards of 
your heaven, and afterwards the region of villages ; from which 
circumstances you may conclude, that we have not come here 
of ourselves, but by direction of the God of heaven. The 
business on which we are come is, to be instructed concerning 
your marriages, whether they are monogamical or polygamical/ 1 
and they said, " What are polygamical marriages 3 Are not they 
adulterous ?" And immediately the bench of judges deputed an 
intelligent person to instruct us" in his own house on this point : 
and when we were come to his house, he set his wife by his side, 
and spoke as follows : " We are in possession of precepts con- 
cerning marriages, which have been handed down to us from the 
primeval or most ancient people, who were principled in love 
truly conjugial, and thereby excelled all others in the virtue and 
potency of that love while they were in the world, and who are 
now in a most blessed state in their heaven, which is in the east. 
We are their posterity, and they, as fathers, have given us, their 
sons^rules of life, among which is the following concerning 
marriages : ' Sons, if you are desirous to love God and your 
neighbour, and to become wise and happy to eternity, we counsel 
you to live married to one wife ; if you depart from this pre- 
cept, all heavenly love will depart from you, and therewith 
internal wisdom ; and you will be banished.' This precept of our 
Fathers we have obeyed as sons, and have perceived its truth, 
which is, that so far as any one loves his conjugial partner alone, 
so far he becomes celestial and internal, and that so far as any 
one does not love his married partner alone, so far he becomes 
natural and external; and in this case he loves only himself and 
the images of his own mind, and is doating and foolish. From 
these considerations, all of us in this heaven live married to one 
wife ; and this being the case, all the borders of our heaven are 
guarded against polygamists, adulterers, and whoremongers ; if 
polygamists invade us, they are cast out into the darkness of the 
north ; if adulterers, they are cast out into fires of the west ; 
and if whoremongers, they are cast out into the delusive lights 
of the south." On hearing this, I asked, " What he meant by 
the darkness of the north, the fires of the west, and the delusive 
lights of the south ?" He answered, " The darkness of the north 
is dulness of mind and ignorance of truths ; the fires of the west 
are the loves of evil ; and the delusive lights of the south are the 
falsifications of truth, which are spiritual whoredoms." After 
this, he said, " Follow me to our repository of curiosities :" so 
we followed him, and he shewed us the writings of the most 
ancient people, which were on the tables of wood and stone, and 
afterwards on smooth blocks of wood ; the writings of the second 
age were on sheets of parchment ; of these he brought me a 

77 



77, 

sheet 
age from 



OQBTJTTGIAL LOTE 



, on which were copied the rules of the people of the first 
a rom their tables of stone, among which also was the precept 
concerning marriages. Having seen tliese and other ancient 
curiosities, the angel said, It is now time for us to take our 
leave; and immediately our host went into the garden, and 
plucked some twigs off a tree, and bound them into a little 
bunch, and gave them to us, saying, "These twigs are from a 
tree, which is native of or peculiar to our heaven, and whose 
juice has a balsamic fragrance." We brought the bunch down 
with us, and descended by the eastern way, which was not 
guarded; and lo! the twigs were changed into shining brass, 
and the upper ends of them into gold, as a sign that we had been 
with the people of the third age, which is named from copper 
or brass. 

78. THE FOTJETH MEMORABLE RELATION. After two days t&e 
angel again addressed me, saying, " Let us complete the period of 
the ages; the last still remains, which is named from IROT.^ The 
people of this age dwell in the north on the side of the west, in the 
inner parts or breadth-ways : they are all from the old inhabitants 
of Asia, who were in possession of the ancient Word, and thence 
derived their worship ; consequently they were before the time 
of our Lord's coming into the world. This^is evident from the 
writings of the ancients, in which those times are so named. 
These same periods are meant by the statue seen by Nebuchad- 
nezzar, whose head was of gold, the breast and arms of silver, 
the belly and thighs of brass, the legs of iron, and the feet of 
iron and of clay, Dan. ii. 32, 33." These particulars the^angel 
related to me in the way, which was contracted and anticipated 
by changes of state induced in our minds according to the genius 
or disposition of the inhabitants whom we passed ; for spaces and 
consequent distances in the spiritual world are appearances 
according to the state of their minds. When we raised our 
eyes, lo! we were in a forest consisting of beeches, chestnut* 
trees and oaks ; and on looking around us, there appeared bears 
to the left, and leopards to the right : and when I wondered at 
this, the angel said, " They are neither bears nor leopards, but 
men, who guard these inhabitants of the north; by their nostrils 
they have a scent of the sphere of life of those who pass by, and 
they rush violently on all who are spiritual, because the inhabi- 
tants are natural. Those who only read the Word, and imbibe 
thence nothing of doctrine, appear at a distance like bears ; and 
those who confirm false principles thence derived, appear like 
leopards. 3 ' On seeing us, they turned away, and we proceeded. 
Beyond the forest there appeared thickets, and afterwards fields 
of grass divided into areas, bordered with "box : this was suc- 
ceeded by a declivity which led to a valley, -wherein were several 
cities* We passed some of them, and entered. into one of a 
considerable size : its streets were irregular, and so were the 
T8 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 78 

houses, which were built of brick, with beams between, and 
plastered. In the places of public resort were consecrated build- 
ings of hewn lime-stone ; the under-structure of which was below 
the ground, and the super-structure above. We went down into 
one of them by three steps, and saw on the walls idols of various 
forms, and a crowd on their knees paying adoration to them : in 
the middle of the building was a company, above whom might 
be seen the head of the tutelary god of that city. As we went 
out, the angel said to me, "Those idols, with the ancients who 
lived in the silver age, as above described, were images represen- 
tative of spiritual truths and moral virtues ; and when the science 
of correspondence was forgotten and extinct, they first became 
objects of worship, and afterwards were adored as deities : hence 
came idolatry." "When we were come out of the consecrated 
building, we made our observations on the men and their dress. 
Their faces were like steel, of a grayish color, and they were 
dressed like comedians, with' napkins about their loins hanging 
from a tunic buttoned close at the breast ; and on their heads 
they wore curled caps like sailors. But the angel said, " Enough 
of this ; let us seek some instruction concerning the marriages 
of the people of this age." "We then entered into the house of 
one of the grandees, who wore on his head a high cap. He 
received us kindly, and said, "Come in and let us converse 
together." We entered into the vestibule, and there seated 
ourselves ; and I asked him about the marriages of his city and 
country. He said, " We do not here live with one wife, but 
some with two or three, and some with more, because we are 
delighted with variety, obedience, and honor, as marks of dignity ; 
and these we receive from our wives according to their number. 
With one wife there would be no delight arising from variety ; 
but disgust from sameness : neither would there be any flattering 
courteousness arising from obedience, but a troublesome dis- 
quietude from equality; neither would there be any satisfaction 
arising from dominion and the honor thence derived, but vexa- 
tion from wrangling about superiority. And what is a woman ? 
Is she not born subject to man's will; to serve, and not to 
domineer? Wherefore in this place every husband in his own 
house enjoys as it were royal dignity ; and as this is suited to 
our love, it constitutes also the blessedness of our life." But I 
asked, "In such case, what becomes of conjugal love, which 
from two souls makes one, and joins minds together, and renders 
a man (homo) blessed ? This love cannot be divided ; for if it be 
it becomes a heat which effervesces and passes away." To this 
he replied, "I do not understand what yon say; what else 
renders a man (homo) blessed, but the emulation of wivea 
contending for the honor of the first place in the husband* 
favor?" As he said this, a man entered into the women's 
apartment and opened the two doors ; whence there issued a 



78, 79 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

Hbidinoiis effluvium, which had a stench like mire ; this arose 
from polygamical love, which is connubial, and at the same 
time adulterous ; so I rose and shut the doors. Afterwards 1 
said, " How can you subsist upon this earth, when you are void 
of any love truly eonjugial, and also when you worship idols?" 
He replied, "As to connubial love, we are so jealous of our 
wives, that we do not suffer any one to enter further within our 
houses than the vestibule ; and where there is jealousy, there 
must also be love. In respect to idols, we do not worship them ; 
but we are not able to think of the God of the universe, except 
by means of such forms presented to our eyes ; for we cannot 
elevate our thoughts above the sensual things of the body, nor 
think of God above the objects of bodily vision." I then asked 
him again, " Are not your idols of different forms ? How then 
can they excite the idea of one God ?" He replied, " This is a 
mystery to us; somewhat of the worship of God lies concealed 
in each form." I then said, " You are merely sensual corporeal 
spirits; you have neither the love of God nor the love of a 
married partner grounded in any spiritual principle ; and these 
loves together form a man (homo\ and from sensual make him 
celestial." As I said this, there appeared through the gate as it 
were lightning: and on my asking what it meant, he said, 
" Such lightning is a sign to us that there will come the ancient 
one from the east, who teaches us concerning God, that He is 
one, the alone omnipotent, who is the first and the last; he also 
admonishes us not to worship idols, but only to look at them as 
images representative of the virtues proceeding from the one 
God, which also together form his worship. This ancient one is 
our angel, whom we revere and obey. He comes to us, and 
raises us, when we are falling into obscure worship of God from 
mere fancies respecting images." On hearing this, we left the 
house and went out of the city; and in the way, from what we 
had seen in the heavens, we drew some conclusions respecting 
the circuit and the progression of eonjugial love; of the circuit 
that it had passed from the east to the south, from the south to 
the west, and from the west to the north ; and of the progression, 
that it had decreased according to its circulation, namely, that 
in the east it was celestial, in the south spiritual, in tfee west 
natural, and in the north sensual ; and also that it had decreased 
in a similar degree with the love and the worship of God : from 
which considerations we further con-eluded, that this love in the 
first age was like ^old, in the second like silver, in the third like 
brass, and in the lourth like iron, and that at length it ceased. 
On this occasion the angel, my guide and companion, , said, 
" Nevertheless I entertain a hope that this love will be revived 
by the God of heaven, who is the Lord, because it is capable ol 
being so revived." 

79. THE FIFTH MEMOBABLE EELATION. The angel that had 
80 * 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 79 

been my guide and companion to the ancients who had lived in 
the four ages, the golden, the silver, the copper, and the iron, 
again presented himself to me, and said, " Are you desirous of 
seeing the age which succeeded those ancient ones, and to know 
what its quality formerly was, and still is ? Follow me, and you 
shall see. They are those concerning whom Daniel thus pro- 
phesied : fi A kingdom shall arise after those four in which iron 
shall le mixed with miry clay: they shall mingle themselves to- 
gether by the seed of man : ~but they shall not cohere one with the 
other, as iron is not mixed with clay, Dan. ii. 41 i3 : 3 " and he 
said, "By the seed of man, whereby iron shall be mixed with 
clay, and still they shall not cohere, is meant the truth of the 
Word falsified," After he had said this, I followed him, and in 
the way, he related to me these particulars. " They dwell in the 
borders between the south and the west, but at a great distance 
beyond those who lived in the four former ages, and also at a 
greater depth." We then proceeded through the south to the 
region bordering on the west, and passed though a formidable 
forest ; for in it there were lakes, out of which crocodiles raised 
their heads, and opened at us their wide jaws beset with teeth ; 
and between the lakes were terrible dogs, some of which were 
three-headed like Cerberus, some two-headed, all looking at us 
as we passed with a horrible hungry snarl and tierce eyes. "We 
entered the western tract of this region, and saw dragons and 
leopards, such as are described in the Revelation, chap. xii. 3 ; 
chap. xiii. 2. Then the angel said to me, " All these wild beasts 
which you have seen, are not wild beasts but correspondences, 
and thereby representative forms of the lusts of the inhabitants 
whom we shall visit. The lusts themselves are represented by 
those horrible dogs; their deceit and cunning by^ crocodiles ; their 
falsities and depraved inclinations to the things which relate 
to worship, by dragons and leopards ; nevertheless the inhabi- 
tants represented do not live close behind the forest, but behind 
a great wilderness which lies intermediate, that they majr be 
fully withheld and separated from the inhabitants of the fore- 
going ages, being of an entirely different genius and quality 
from them : they have indeed heads above their breasts, and 
breasts above their loins, and loins above their feet, like the 
primeval men ; but in their heads there is not any thing of gold, 
nor in their breasts any thing of silver, nor in their loins any 
thing of brass, no, nor in their feet any thing of pure iron; 
but in their heads is iron mixed with clay, in their breasts is 
each mixed with brass, in their loins is also each mixed with 
silver, and in their feet is each mixed with gold : by this inver- 
sion they are changed from men (homines) into graven images of 
men, in"which inwardly nothing coheres ; for what was highest, 
is made lowest thus what was the head is become the heel, and 

a si 



78 OONJUGIAL LOVE 

vice versa. They appear to us from heaven like stage-players, 
who lie upon their elbows with the body inverted, and put 
themselves in a walking motion ; or like beasts, which lie on 
their backs, and lift the feet upwards, and from the head, which 
they plunge in the earth, look towards heaven." ^ "We passed 
through the forest, and entered the wilderness, which was not 
less terrible : it consisted of heaps of stones, and ditches between 
them, out of which crept hydras and vipers, and there flew forth 
venomous flying serpents. This whole wilderness was on a con- 
tinual declivity : we descended by a long steep descent, and at 
length came into the valley inhabited by the people .of that 
region and age* There were here and there cottages, which 
appeared at length to meet, and to be joined together in the 
form of a city : this we entered, and lo ! the houses were built 
of the scorched branches of trees, cemented together with mud, 
and covered with black slates. The streets were irregular ; all of 
them at the entrance narrow, but wider as they extended, and at 
the end spacious, where there were places of public resort : hence 
there were as many places of public resort as there were streets. 
As we entered the city, it became dark, because the sky did not 
appear; we therefore looked up and light was given us, and we 
saw : and then I asked those we met, " Are you able to see, 
because the sky does not appear above you f " They replied, 
' 4 What a question is this ! we see clearly ; we walk in full light." 
On hearing this, the angel said to me, " Darkness to them is 
light, and light darkness, as is the case with birds of night ; foi 
they look downwards and not upwards." We entered into some 
of the cottages, and saw in each a man with his woman, and we 
asked them, " Bo all live here in their respective houses with one 
wife only !" And they replied with a hissing, " What do you 
mean by one wife only? Why do not you ask, whether we live 
with one harlot 2 What is a wife but a harlot ? By our laws 
it is not allowable to commit fornication with more than one 
woman ; but still we do not hold it dishonorable or unbecoming 
to do so with more ; yet out of our own houses we glory in this 
one among another: thus we rejoice in the license we take, and 
the pleasure attending it, more than polygamists. Why is a 
plurality of wives denied us, when yet it has been granted, and 
at this day is granted in the whole world about us $ What is 
life with one woman only, but captivity and imprisonment 1 We 
however in this place have broken the bolt of this prison, an 
have rescued ourselves from slavery, and made ourselves free j 
and who is angry with a prisoner for asserting his freedom when 
it isjn his power?" to this we replied, "You speak, friend, as 
if without any sense of religion. What rational person does not 
know that adulteries are profane and infernal, and that marriages 
are holy and heavenly. Do not adulteries take place with devils 
82 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 



79 



in hell, and marriages with angels in heaven ? DiO} you 
read the sixth* commandment of the decalogue ? and f n p ila i 
that adulterers can by no means enter heaven f " Hereupo_ n ' oll 
host laughed heartily, and regarded me as a simpleton, a^ 
almost as out of my senses. But just then there came running 
a messenger from the chief of the city, and said, " Bring the 
two strangers into the town-hall ; and if they refuse to come, 
drag them there : we have seen them in a shade of light ; they 
have entered privately ; they are spies." Hereupon the angel 
said to me, " The reason why we were seen in a shade, is, be- 
cause the light of heaven in which we have been, is to them a 
shade, and the shade of hell is to them light; and this is because 
they regard nothing as sin, not even adultery: hence they see 
what is false altogether as what is true ; and what is false is lucid 
in hell before satans, and what is true darkens their eyes like the 
shade of night." We said to the messenger, " We will not be 
pressed, still less will we be dragged into the town-hall; but we 
will go with you of our own accord." So we went; and lo! 
there was a great crowd assembled, out of which came some 
lawyers, and whispered to us, saying, " Take heed to yourselves . 
how you speak any thing against religion, the form of our govern- 
ment, and good manners :" and we replied, " We will not speak 
against them, but for them and from them." Then we asked, 
u What are your religious notions respecting marriages?" At 
this the crowd murmured, and said, " What have you to do here 
with marriages? Marriages are marriages." Again we asked, 
" What are your religious notions respecting whoredoms !" At 
this also they murmured, saying, " What have you to do here 
with whoredoms ? Whoredoms are whoredoms : let him that is 
guiltless cast the first stone." And we asked thirdly, " Does 
your religion teach that marriages are holy and heavenly, and 
that adulteries are profane and infernal 2" Hereupon several 
in the crowd laughed aloud, jested, and bantered, saying, 
" Inquire of our priests, and not of us, as to what concerns 
religion. We acquiesce entirely in what they declare ; because 
no point of religion is an object of decision in the understand- 
ing. Have you never heard that the understanding is without 
any sense or discernment in mysteries, which constitute the 
whole of religion 2 And what have actions to do with religion I 
Is not the soul made blessed by the muttering of words from a 
devout heart concerning expiation, satisfaction, and imputation, 
and not by works ?" But at this instant there came some of 
the wise ones of the city, so called, and said, " Ketire heuce ;' 
the crowd grows angry ; a storm is gathering : let us talk IE 
private on this subject ; there is a retired walk behind the town- 
aall ; come with us there." We followed them ; and they asked 

* According to the division of the commarlmenta adopted by tht Church c* Ei gland, it If th* 
twwdh that is here referred *.o. 



79 CONJUGIAi LOVE 

vice versa, ./e came, and what was our business there?" And 
who lie, ' 4 to be instructed concerning marriages, whether they 
with you, as they were with the ancients who lived in 



'v golden, silver, and copper ages ; or whether they are not 
holy." And they replied, u What do you mean by holiness ? " 
Are not marriages works of the flesh and of the night!" And 
we answered, u Are they not also works of the spirit? arid what 
the flesh does from the spirit, is not that spiritual ? and all that 
the spirit does, it does from the marriage of good and truth. 
Is not this marriage spiritual, which enters the natural marriage 
of husband and wife P To this the wise ones, so called, made 
answer, " There is too much subtlety and sublimity in what you 
say on this subject; you ascend far above rational principles to 
spiritual : and who, beginning at such an elevation, can descend 
thence, and thus form any decision ?" To this they added with 
a smile of ridicule, u Perhaps you have the wings of an eagle, 
and can fly in the highest region of heaven, and make these dis- 
coveries : this we cannot do. 35 We then asked them to tell us, 
from the altitude or region in which the winged ideas of their 
minds fly, whether they knew, or were able to know, that the 
love of one man with one wife is conjugial love, into which are 
collected all the beatitudes, satisfactions, delights, pleasantnesses, 
and pleasures of heaven; and that this love is from the Lord 
according to the reception of good and truth from him ; thus 
according to the state of the church?" On hearing this, they 
turned away, and said, " These men are out of their senses ; they 
enter the ether with their judgement, and scatter about vain con- 
jectures like nuts and almonds." After this they turned to us, 
saying, u We will give a direct answer to your windy conjectures 
and dreams ;" and they said, "What has conjugial love in com- 
mon with religion and inspiration from God ? Is not this love with 
every one according to the state of his potency? Is it not the 
same with those who are out of the church as with those who are 
in it, with Gentiles as with Christians, yea, with the impious as 
with the pious? Has not every one the strength of this love 
either hereditarily, or from bodily health, or from temperance of 
life, or from warmth of climate ? By medicines also it may be 
strengthened and stimulated. Is not the case similar with the 
brute creation, especially with birds which unite in pairs ? More- 
over, is not this love carnal I and what has a carnal principle in 
common with the spiritual state of the church ? Does this love, 
as to its ultimate effect with a wife, differ at all from love as to 
its effect with a harlot! Is not the lust similar, and the delight 
similar ! Wherefore it is injurious to deduce the origin of con- 
jugial love from the holy things of the church." On hearing 
this, we said to them, u You reason from the stimulus of las- 
civiousness, and not from conjugial love; you are altogether 
ignorant what conjugial love is, because it is cold with you ; from 

84: 



AJSTD ITS CHASTE PELIGHIS. 79, 80 

what you have said we are convinced that yon are of the age 
which has its name from and consists of iron and clay, which do 
not cohere, according to the prophecy in Daniel, chap. ii. 43 ; for 
you make conjngial love and adulterous love the same thing ; and 
do these two cohere any more than iron and clay ? You arebe- 
iieved and called wise, and yet you have not the smallest preten- 
sions to that character." On hearing this, they were inflamed 
with rage and made a loud cry, and called the crowd together to 
east us out ; but at that instant, by virtue of power given us by 
the Lord, we stretched out our hands, and lo ! the flying serpents, 
vipers, and hydras, and also the dragons from the wilderness, 
presented themselves, and entered and filled the city ; at which 
the inhabitants being terrified fled away. The angel then said 
to me, " Into this region new comers from the earth daily enter, 
and the former inhabitants are by turns separated and cast down 
into the gulphs of the west, which appear at a distance like lakes 
of fire and brimstone. All in those gulphs are spiritual and 

natural adulterers. 

80. THE SIXTH MEMOEAJBLE KELATIOST. As the angel said 
this, I looked to the western boundary, and lo ! there appeared as 
it were lakes of fire and brimstone ; and I asked him, why the 
hells in that quarter had such an appearance ? He replied, 
"They appear as lakes in consequence of the falsifications of 
truth ; because water in the spiritual sense signifies truth; and there 
is an appearance as it were of fire round about them, and in them, 
in consequence of the lore of evil, and as it were of brimstone in 
consequence of the love of what is false. Those three things, the 
lake, the fire, and the brimstone, are appearances, because they 
are correspondences of the evil loves of the inhabitants. All in 
that quarter are shut up in eternal work-houses, where they labor 
for food, for clothing, and for a bed to lie on ; and when they 
do evil, they are grievously and miserably punished." I further 
asked the angel, why he said that in that quarter are spiritual 
and natural adulterers, and why he had not rather said, that 
they were evil doers and impious 3 He replied, " Because all 
those who make light of adulteries, that is, who commit them 
from a confirmed persuasion that they are not sins; and thus 
are in the purpose of committing them from, a belief of their 
being harmless, are in their hearts evil doers and impious ; for 
the conjugial human principle ever goes hand in hand with reli- 
gion ; and every step and movement made under the influence 
of religion, and leading to it, is also a step and movement made 



mat conjugiai principle was, ne saia, " i is me^iesms ui uvmg 
with one wife ; and every Christian has this desire according to 
his religion." I was afterwards grieved in spirit to think that 
marriages, which in the most ancient times had been mostholy, 



SO, SI CONJUQIAl LOVE 

were so wretchedly changed into adulteries. The angel said, 
" The case is the same at this day with religion ; for the Lord 
says. In the consummation of the age there will be the abomina- 
tion of desolation foretold by Daniel. And there will be great 
affliction, such as there has not been from the beginning^ of the 
world? Matt. xxiv. 15, 21. The abomination of desolation sig- 
nifies the falsification and deprivation of all truth ; affliction sig- 
nifies the state of the church infested by evils and falses^andthe 
consummation of the age, concerning which those things are 
spoken, signifies the last time or end of ^the church. ^ The 
end is 'now, because there does not remain a truth which is 
not falsified ; and the falsification of truth is spiritual whore- 
dom, which acts in unity with natural whoredom, because they 
cohere." 

81. As we were conversing and lamenting together on this 
occasion, there suddenly appeared a beam of light, which, dart- 
ing powerfully upon my eyes, caused me to look up : and lo ! 
the whole heaven above us appeared luminous ; and from the 
east to the west in an extended series we heard a GLORIFICATION : 
and the angel said to me, " That is a glorification of the Lord on 
account of his coming, and is made by the angels of the eastern 
and western heavens." From the northern and southern heavens 
nothing was heard but a soft and pleasing murmur^ As^the 
angel understood everything, he told me first, that glorifications 
and celebrations of the Lord are made from the Word, because 
then they are made from the Lord ; for the Lord is the Word, 
that is, the essential divine truth therein; and he said, " Now in 
particular they glorify and celebrate the Lord hy these words, 
which were spoken by Daniel the prophet, c Thou sawest iron 
mixed with miry clay : they shall mingle themselves together by 
the seed of man : but they shall not cohere. Nevertheless in those 
days the (rod of the heavens shall cause a 'kingdom to arise^ which 
shall not perish for ages. It shall bruise and consume those king- 
doms; but itself shall stand for ages' Dan. ii. 43, 4:4." ^ After 
this, 1 heard as it were the voice of singing, and further in the 
east I saw a glittering of light more resplendent than the former ; 
and I asked the angel what was the subject of their glorification ? 
He said, "These words in Daniel; 'I saw in the visions of the night> 
<&nd lo / with the clouds of heaven there came as it were the SON 
OF MAN : and to him was given dominion and a kingdom; and all 
people and nations shall worship him. His dominion is the do- 
minion of an age> which shall not_pass away / and his kingdom 
that which shall not perish? Dan. vii. 13, 14. They are further 
celebrating" the Lord from these words in the Revelation; * To 
JESUS CHRIST be glory and strength ; behold he cometh with clouds, 
fie is alpha and omega, the beginning and the end^ thejwst and the 
last / who is, who was, and who is to come^ the almighty. 1^ John^ 
\eard this from the So^ OF MAN, out of the midst of the seven 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 81, 82 

candlesticks? Rev. i. 5 7,10 13; chap. xxii. 13; Matt. xxiv. 
30, 31." I looked again into the eastern heaven : it was en- 
lightered on the right side, and the light entered the southern 
expanse. I heard a sweet sound ; and I asked the angel, what 
was the subject of their glorification in that quarter respecting 
Jie Lord ? He said, " These words in the Revelation : 4 1 saw a 
new heaven and a new earth; and I saw the holy city, New 
Jerusalem, coming down from &od out of heaven, prepared as a 
BRIDE ybr her HUSBAND : and the angel spake with me, and said, 
Come, I will shew thee the BRIDE, THE LAMB'S WIFE : and he 
carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and 
shewed me the holy city, Jerusalem] Rev. xxi. 1, 2, 9, 10 : also 
these words, *I JESUS am the bright and morning star / and 
the spirit and the bride say, COME ; AND HE SAID, EVEN I COME 
QUICKLY ; Amen : even COME, LORD JESUS," Rev. xxii. 16, 17, 20.' 
After these and several other subjects of glorification, there was 
heard a common glorification from the east to the west of hea- 
ven, and also from the south to the north ; and I asked the 
angel, "What now is the subject?" He said, "These words 
from the prophets ; c Let all flesh know that I, JEHOVAH, AM THY 
SAVIOUR AND THY REDEEMER,' Isaiah xlix. 26. 'Thus saith 
JEHOVAH, the King of Israel, and HIS REDEEMER, JEHOVAH 
ZEBAOTH, I am the first and the last, and BESIDE ME THERE is 
NO GOD,' Isaiah xliv, 6. ; It shall le said in that day, Lo ! THIS 
is OUR GOD, whom we have expected to deliver us ; THIS is JE- 
HOVAH WHOM WE HAVE EXPECTED.' Isaiah xxv. 9. ' The voice 
of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare a way for JEHOVAH. 
Behold THE LORD JEHOVAH cometh in strength. He shall feed his 
flock like a SHEPHERD,' Isaiah xl. 3, 10, 11. 4 Unto us a child 
is horn / unto us a son is given / whose name is Wonderful, Qoun- 
tellor, GOD, Hero, FATHER OF ETERNITY, Prince of Peace? 
Isaiah ix. 6. c Behold the days will come, and I will raise up to 
David a righteous branch, who shall reign a King : and this is his 
name, JEHOVAH OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS,' Jeremiah xxiii. 5, 6 ; 
chap, xxxiii. 15, 16. 'JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is his name, and 
THY REDEEMER the holy one of Israel : THE GOD or THE WHOLE 

EARTH SHALL HE BE CALLED, 3 Isaiah llV. 5. ' IN THAT DAY 
THERE SHALL BE ONE JEHOVAH, AND HIS NAME ONE,' Zech. XIV. 9." 

On hearing and understanding these words, my heart exulted, 
and I went home with joy ; and there I returned out of a state 
of the spirit into a state of the body ; in which latter state I 
committed to writing what I had seen and heard : to which I 
now add the following particular. That conjugial love, such 
as it was with the ancients, will be revived again by the Lord 
after his coming ; because this love is from the Lord alone, and 
is the portion of those who from him, by means of the Word, 
are made spiritual. 

82. After this, a man from the northern quarter came run- 

87 



82 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

ning in great haste, and looked at me with a threatening conn 
tenance, and addressing n.e in a passionate tone of voice, said, 
" Are yon the man that wishes to seduce the world, under the 
notion of re-establishing a new church, which you understand 
by the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God ; 
and teaching, that the Lord will endow with love truly conjngial 
those who embrace the doctrines of that church ; the delights and 
felicity of which love you exalt to the very heaven ? Is not this 
e mere fiction ? and do you not hold it forth as a bait and entice- 
ment to accede to your new opinions 1 But tell me briefly, what 
are the doctrinals of the New Church, and I will see whether they 
agree or disagree." I replied, " The doctrines of the church, 
which is meant by the New Jerusalem, are as follow : I. That 
there is one God, in whom there is a divine trinity ; and that he 
is the LOED JESUS CEEIST. II. That a saving faith is to believe 
on him. III. That evils are to be shunned, because they are 
of the devil and from the devil. IY. That goods are to be 
done, because they are of God and from God. V. That these 
are to be done by a man as from himself; but that it ought 
to be believed, that they are done from the Lord with liim 
and by him." On hearing these doctrines, his fury for some 
moments abated ; but after some deliberation he again looked 
at me sternly, and said, " Are these five precepts the doctrines 
of faith and charity of the New Church?" I replied, "They 
are." He then asked sharply, " How can you demonstrate the 
FIRST, ' that there is one God in whom there is a divine trinity ; 
and that he is the Lord Jesus Christ?" I said, "I demon- 
strate it thus : Is not God one and individual ? Is not there a 
trinity ? If God be one and individual, is not he one person ? 
If he be one person, is not the trinity in that person ? That 
this God is the LOED JESUS CHRIST, is evident from these con- 
siderations, that he was conceived from God the Father, Luke 
i. 34, 35 ; and thus tha* as to his soul he is God ; and hence, as 
he himself saith, that the Father and himself are one, John x 
30; that he is in the Father, and the Father in him, John xix. 
10, 11 ; that he that seeth him and knoweth him, seeth and 
knoweth the Father, John xiv. 7, 9 ; that no one seeth and 
knoweth the Father, except he that is in the bosom of the Fa- 
ther, John i. 18 ; that all things of the Father are his, John iii. 
35 ; chap. xvi. 15 ; that he is the Way, the Truth, and the Life ; 
and that no one cometh to the Father but by him, John xiv. 6 ; 
thus of or from him, because the Father is in him ; and, accord- 
ing to Paul, that all the fulness of the Godhead dwelleth bodily 
in him, Coloss. ii 9 ; and moreover, that he hath power over all 
flesh, John xvii. 2 ; and that he hath all power in heaven and in 
earth, Matt, xxviii. 18 : from which declarations it follows, that 
he is God of heaven and earth." He afterwards asked how I 
proved the SECOND, " that a saving faith is to believe on him?" 
88 



ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 82, 83 

1 said, " By these words of the Lord, This is the will of the Fa- 
ther, that every one that BELIEVETH ON THE SON should hare 
eternal life, John vi. 40.' God so loved the world, that he gave 
his only-begotten Son, that every one that BELIEVETH: ON HIM 
should not perish, but should have eternal life,' Johuiii. 15, 16. 
HE THAT BELIEVETH ON THE SOH, hath eternal life ; but he that 
believeth not the Son will not see life ; but the wrath of God 
abideth on him,' John iii. 36." He afterwards said, " Demon- 
strate also the THIRD, and the next two doctrines :" I replied, 
" What need is there to demonstrate 6 that evils ought to be 
shunned, because they are of the devil and from the devil ; and 
that goods ought to be done, because they are of God and from 
God ;* also 4 that the latter are to be done by a man as from him- 
self; but that he ought to believe that they are from the Lord 
with, -him and by him?" That these three doctrines are true, is 
confirmed by the whole Sacred Scripture from beginning to end ; 
for what else is therein principally insisted on, but to shun evils 
and do goods, and believe on the Lord Grod ? Moreover, with- 
out these three doctrines there can be no religion : for does not 
religion relate to life ? and what is life but to shun evils and do 
goods ? and how can a man do the latter and shun the former but 
as from himself? Therefore if you remove these doctrines from 
the church, you remove from it the Sacred Scripture, and also 
religion ; and these being removed, the church is no longer a 
church. 55 The man on hearing this retired, and mused on what 
he had heard ; but still he departed in indignation. 



ON THE ORIGIN OF CONJUGAL LOVE AS GROUNDED IN THE 
MARRIAGE Qj 1 GOOD AND TRUrH. 

83. THEKE are both internal and external origins of conjugial 
love, and several of each ; nevertheless there is but one inmost 
or universal origin of all. That this origin is the marriage of 
good and truth, shall be demonstrated in what now follows. 
The reason why no one heretofore has deduced the origin of that 
love from this ground, is, because it has never yet been discovered 
that there is any union between good and truth ; and the reason 
why this discovery has not been made, is, because good does not 
appear in the light of the understanding, as truth does, and hence 
the knowledge of it conceals itself and evades every inquiry : and 
as from this circumstance good is as it were unknown, it was 
impossible for any one to conjecture that any marriage subsisted 
between it and truth: vea, before the rational natural sight, 
good appears so different from truth, that no conjunction between 
them can be supposed. That this is the case, may be seen from 

SD 



83, 84 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

common discourse whenever they are mentioned ; as when it is 
said, " This is good," truth is not at all thought of; and when 
it is said, "This is true," neither is good at all thought of; 
therefore at this day it is believed by many, that trutl^is one 
thing and good another ; and by many also, that a man is intel- 
ligent and wise, and thereby a man (homo), according to the 
truths which he thinks, speaks, writes, and believes, and not at 
the same time according to goods. That nevertheless there is 
no good without truth, nor any truth without good, consequently 
that there is an eternal marriage between them ; also that this 
marriage is the origin of conjugial love, shall now be shewn and 
explained in the following order : L Good and truth are the 
universals of creation^ and thence are in all created things; but 
they are in created subjects according to the form of each. II. 
There is neither solitary good nor solitary truth, but in all cases 
they are conjoined. III. There is the truth of goody and from 
this the good of truth; or truth grounded^ in good, and good 
grounded in that truth; and in those two principles is implanted 
from creation an inclination to join themselves together into a one. 
IV. In the subjects of the animal kingdom^ the truth of good, or 
truth grounded in good, is male (or masculine^; and the good of 
that trit,th) or good grounded in that truth^ is female (orfemi- 
nine). V. From the influx of the marriage of good and truth 
from the Lord, the love of the sex and conjugial love are derived. 
VI. The love of the sex belongs to the external or natural man, 
and hence it is common to every animal. VII. But conjugial 
love belongs to the internal or spiritual man $ and hence this love 
is peculiar to man, VIII. With man conjugial love is in the 
love of the sex* as a gem in its matrix. DC The love of the sex 
vvith man is not the origin of conjugial love^ butitsjlrst rudiment, 
thus it is like an external natural principle, in which an internal 
spiritual principle is implanted. X. During the implantation of 
conjugial love, the love of the sex inverts itself and becomes the 
chaste love of the sew. XI. The male and the female were created 
to be the essential form of the marriage of good and truth* XII. 
They are that form in their inmost principles^ and thence in 
what is derived from those principles, in proportion as the in- 
teriors of their minds are opened. We will now proceed to 
the explanation. 

84. I. GOOD AND TRUTH AEE THE UNIVERSALS OF CEEATION, 
AND THENCE AEE IN" ALL CREATED THINGS ; BUT THEY ARE IN 
CREATED SUBJECTS ACCORDING TO THE FORM OF EACH. The rea- 

eon why good and truth are the universals of creation, is, because 
these two are in the Lord God the Creator ; yea, they are him- 
self; for he is essential divine fgood and essential divine truth. 
But this enters more clearly into the perception of the under- 
standing, and thereby into the ideas of thought, if instead of 
good we say love, and instead of truth we say wisdom ; conse* 
90 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 84: 86 

quently^tliat in the Lord God the Creator there are divine love 
and divine wisdom, and that they are himself; that is, that he 
is essential love and essential wisdom ; for those two are the same 
as good and truth. The reason of this is, because good has rela- 
tion to love, and truth to wisdom ; for love consists of goods, 
and wisdom truths. As the two latter and the two former are one 
and the same, in the following pages we shall sometimes speak 
of the latter and sometimes of the former, while by both the 
same is understood. This preliminary observation is here mado, 
lest different meanings should be attached to the expressions 
when they occur in the following pages. 

85. Since therefore the Lord God the Creator is essential 
iove and essential wisdom, and from him was created the uni- 
verse, which thence is as a work proceeding from him, it must 
needs be, that in all created things there is somewhat of good 
and of truth from him ; for whatever is done and proceeds from 
any one, derives from him a certain similarity to him. That this is 
the case, reason also may see from the order in which all things 
in the universe were created ; which order is, that one exists for 
the sake of another, and that thence one depends upon another, 
like the links of a chain : for all things are for the sake of the 
human race, that from it the angelic heaven may exist, through 
which creation returns to the Creator himself, in whom it ori- 
ginated : hence there is a conjunction of the created universe 
with its Creator, and by conjunction everlasting conservation. 
Hence it is that good and truth are called the universal of crea- 
tion. That this is the case, is manifested to every one who takes a 
rational view of the subject : he sees in every created thing some- 
thing which relates to good, and something which relates to 
truth. 

86. The reason why good and truth in created subjects are 
according to the form of each, is, because every subject receives 
influx according to its form. The conservation of the whole con- 
sists in the perpetual influx of divine good and divine truth into 
forms created from those principles ; for thereby subsistence or 
conservation is perpetual existence or creation. That every sub- 
ject receives influx according to its form, may be illustrated vari- 
ously ; as by the influx of heat and light from the sun into vege- 
tables of every kind ; each of which receives influx according to 
its form ; thus every tree and shrub according to its form, every 
herb and every blade of grass according to its form : the influx 
is alike.into all; but the reception, which is according to the 
form, causes every species to continue a peculiar species. The 
same thing may also be illustrated by the influx into animals of 
every, kind according to the form of each. That the influx is 
according to the form of every particular thing, may also be seen 
by the most unlettered person, if he attends to the various instru- 
ments of sound, as pipes, flutes, trumpets, horns, and organs 



86, 87 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

which give forth a sound from being blcwn alike, or from a like 
influx of air, according to their respective forms. 

87. II. THERE is NEITHER SOLITARY GOOD NOR SOLITARY 

TRUTH. BUT IN ALL CASES THEY ARE CONJOINED. "Whoever is 

desirous from any of the senses to acquire an idea respecting 
good, cannot possibly find it without the addition of something 
which exhibits and manifests it: good without this is a nameless 
entity ; and this something, by which it is exhibited and mani- 
fested, has relation to truth. Pronounce the term good only, and 
say nothing at the same time of this or that thing with which it 
is conjoined; or define it abstractedly, or without the addition 
of anything connected with it; and you will see that it is a mere 
nothing, and that it becomes something with its addition ; and if 
you examine the subject with discernment, you will perceive that 
good, without some addition, is- a term of no predication, and 
thence of no relation, of no affection, and of no state ; in a word, 
of no quality. The case is similar in regard to truth, if it be 
pronounced and heard without what it is joined with : that what 
it is joined with relates to good, may be seen by refined reason. 
But since goods are innumerable, and each ascends to its greatest, 
and descends to its least, as by the steps of a ladder, and also, 
according to its progression and quality, varies its name, it is 
difficult for any but the wise to see the relation of good and truth 
to their objects, and their conjunction in them. That neverthe- 
less there is not any good without truth, nor any truth without 
good, is manifest from common perception, provided it be first 
acknowledged that every thing in the universe has relation to 

faod and truth ; as was shewn in the foregoing article, n. 84, 8 
hat there is neither solitary good nor solitary truth, may be 
illustrated and at the same time confirmed by various considera- 
tions ; as by the following ; that there is no essence without a 
form, nor any form without an essence; for good is an essence 
or esse / and truth is that by which the essence is formed and 
the esse exists. Again in a man (homo) there are the will and 
the understanding. Good is of the will, and truth is of the 
understanding; and the will alone does nothing but by the 
understanding ; nor does the understanding alone do anything 
but from the will. Again, in a man there are two fountains of 
bodily life, the heart and the lungs. The heart cannot produce 
any sensitive and moving life without the respiring lungs ; neither 
can the lungs without the heart The heart has relation to good, 
and the respiration of the lungs to truth : there is also a corre- 
spondence between them. The case is similar in all the things 
of the mind and of the body belonging to him ; but we have not 
leisure to produce further confirmations in this place ; therefore 
the reader is referred to the ANGELIC WISDOM CONCERNING THE 
DIVINE PROVIDENCE, n. 3--16, where this subject is more fully 
confirmed and explained in the following order : I. That the 
92 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 87, 88 

universe with all its created subjects, is from the divine love by 
the divine wisdom; or, what is the same thing, from the divine 
good by the divine truth. II. That the divine good and the 
divine truth proceed as a one from the Lord. III. That this 
one, in a certain image, is in every created thing. T. That good 
is not good, only so far as it is united with truth ; and that truth 
is not truth, only so far as it is united with good. VII. That 
the Lord does n)t suffer that any thing should be divided; where- 
fore a man must either be in good and at the same time in truth, 
or in evil and at the same time in falsehood : not to mention 
several other considerations. 

88. THERE is THE TRUTH OF GOOD, AND FROM THIS THE 
GOOD OF TRUTH; OR TRUTH GROUNDED IN GOOD, AND GOOD 

GROUNDED IN THAT TRUTH ; AND IN THOSE TWO PRINCIPLES IS 
IMPLANTED FROM CREATION A^JNCLLNTATION TO JOIN THEMSELVES 

TOGETHER INTO A ONE. It is necessary that s-ome distinct idea 
be acquired concerning these principles ; because on such idea 
depends all knowledge respecting the essential origin of conjugial 
love : for, as will be seen presently, the truth of good, or truth 
grounded on good, is male (or masculine), and the good of truth, 
or good grounded in that truth, is female (or feminine) : but 
this may be comprehended more distinctly, if instead 01 good 
we speak of love, and instead of truth we speak of wisdom ; 
which are one and the same, as may be seen above, n. 84. 
Wisdom cannot exist with a man but by means" of the love of 
growing wise; if this love be taken away, it is altogether 
impossible for him to become wise. Wisdom derived from this 
love is meant by the truth of good, or by truth grounded in 
good : but when a man has procured to himself wisdom from 
that love, and loves it in himself, or himself for its sake, he 
then forms a love which is the love of wisdom, and is meant 
by the good of truth, or by good grounded in that truth. There 
are therefore two loves belonging to a man, whereof one, which 
is prior, is the love of growing wise ; and the other, which is 
posterior, is the love of wisdom : but this latter love if it 
remains with man, is an evil love, and is called self-conceit, 
or the love of his own intelligence. That it was provided from 
creation, that this love should be taken out of the man, lest 
it should destroy him, and should be transferred to the woman, 
for the effecting of conjugial love, which restores man to integrity, 
will be confirmed in the following pages. Something respecting 
those two loves, and the transfer of the latter to the woman, 
may be seen above, n. 32, 33, and in the preliminary MEMORA- 
BLE RELATION, n. 20. If therefore instead of love is understood 
good, and instead of wisdom truth, it is evident, from what has 
been already said, that there exists the truth of good, or trutn 
grounded in good, and from this the good of truth, or good 
grounded in that truth. 

93 



89 5 90 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

89. The reason why in these two principles there is implanted 
from creation an inclination to join themselves together into a 
one, is because the one was formed from the other ; wisdom 
being formed from the love of growing wise, or truth being 
formed from good' ; and the love of wisdom being formed from 
that wisdom, or the good of truth from that truth ; from which 
formation it may be seen, that there is a mutual inclination to 
re-unite themselves, and to join themselves together into^a one. 
This effect takes place with men wjho are in genuine wisdom, 
and with women who are in the love of that wisdom in the hus- 
band ; thus with those who are in love truly conjugial. But con- 
cerning the wisdom which ought to exist with^the man, and which 
should be loved by the wife, more will be said in what follows. 

90. IV. IN THE SUBJECT OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM THE 
TRUTH OF GOOD, OK TBTJTH GROUNDED IN GOOD, IS MALE (OE 

MASCULINE) ; AND THE GOOD OF THAT TEUTH, OB GOOD GROUNDED 

IN THAT TRUTH, IS FEMALE (OR FEMININE). That from the 

Lord, the Creator and Supporter of the universe, there flows a 
perpetual union of love and wisdom, or a marriage of good and 
truth, and that created subjects receive the influx, each according 
to its form, was shewn above, n. 84: 86 : but that the male 
from this marriage, or from that union, receives the truth of 
wisdom, and that the good of love from the Lord is conjoined 
thereto according to reception, and that this reception takes 
place in the intellect, and that hence the male is born to become 
intellectual, reason, by its own light, may discover from various 
particulars respecting him, especially from his affection, applica- 
tion, manners, and form. It is discoverable from his AFFECTION, 
which is the affection of knowing, of understanding^ and of 
growing wise ; the affection of knowing takes place in childhood, 
the affection of understanding in youth and in the entrance upon 
manhood, and the affection of growing wise takes place from the 
entrance upon manhood even to old age ; from which it is evi- 
dent, that his nature or peculiar temper is inclinable to form the 
intellect ; consequently that he is born to become intellectual : 
but as this cannot be effected except by means of love, therefore 
the Lord adjoins love to him according to his reception ; that is, 
according to his intention in desiring to grow wise. The same 
is discoverable from his APPLICATION, which is to such things as 
respect the intellect, or in which the intellect is predominant ; 
several of which relate to public offices and regard the public 
good. The same is discoverable too from his MANNERS, which 
are all grounded in the intellect as a ruling principle ; in conse- 
quence whereof the actions of his life, which are meant by 
manners, are rational; and if not, still he is desirous they should 
appear so; masculine rationality is also discernible in every one 
of his virtues. Lastly, the same is discoverable from his FOKM, 
which is different and totally distinct from the female form : 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 90 92 

on which subject see also what was said above, n. 33. Add to 
this, that the principle of prolification is in him, which is de- 
rived from the intellect alone ; for it is from truth grounded in 
good in the intellect : that the principle of prolification is from 
this source may be seen in the following pages. 

91. But that the female is born to be a subject of the will 
(ut sit wluntaria^ yet a subject of the will as grounded in the 
intellectual principle of the man, or what is the same, to be the 
love -of the man's wisdom, because she was formed through his 
wisdom, (on which subject see above, n. 88, 89,) may also 
appear from the female's affection, application, manners, and 
form. From her AFFECTION, which is the affection of loving 
knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom ; nevertheless not in herself 
but in the man ; and thus of loving the man : for the man (vir) 
cannot be loved merely on account of his form, in that he ap- 
pears as a man (homo), but on account of the talent with which 
he is gifted, which causes him to be a man. From her APPLICA- 
TION ; in that it is to such manual works as knitting, needle- 
work, and the like, serving for ornament, both to decorate 
herself and to exalt her beauty : and moreover from her applica- 
tion to various domestic duties, which connect themselves with 
the duties of men, which, as was said, relate to public offices. 
They are led to these duties from an inclination to marriage, that 
they may become wives, and thereby one with their husbands. 
That the same is also discoverable from their MANNERS and 
FOEM, needs no explanation. 

92. V. FKOM THE INFLUX OF THE MAKKIAGE OF GOOD AND 

TBUTH FEOM THE LOUD, THE LOYE OF THE SEX AND CONJUGIAL 

LOYE ABE DEBIVED. That good aud truth are the universals of 
creation, and thence are in all created subjects ; and that they 
are in created subjects according to the form of each ; and that 
good and truth proceed from the Lord not as two but as one, 
was shewn above, n. 84: 87 : from these considerations it follows, 
that the UNIYEKSAL CONJUGIAL SPHERE proceeds from the Lord, 
and pervades the universe from its primaries to its ultimates ; 
thus from angels even to worms. The reason why such a sphere 
of the marriage of good and truth proceeds from the Lord, is, 
because it is also the sphere of propagation, that is, of prolifica- 
tion and fructification ; and this sphere is the same with the 
divine providence relating to the preservation of the universe by 
successive generations. Now since this universal sphere, which 
is that of the marriage of good and truth, flows into its subjects 
according to the form of each, see n. 86, it follows that the 
male receives it according to his form, thus in the intellect, 
because he is in an intellectual form ; and that the female receives 
it according to her form, thus in the will, because she is a form 
of the will grounded in the intellect of the man ; and since tha 

95 



92 9 ft CONJUGIAL LOVE 

sphere is also the sphere of proliflcation, it follows that hence 
is the love of the sex. 

93. The reason why conjugial love also is from this^same 
source, is, because that sphere flows into the form of wisdom 
with men, and also with angels ; for a man may increase in 
wisdom to the end of his life in the world, and afterwards to 
eternity in heaven ; and in proportion as he increases in wisdom, 
his form is perfected ; and this form receives not the love of the 
sex, but the love of one of the sex ; for with one of the sex it 
may be united to the inmost principles in which heaven with its 
felicities consists, and this union is conjugial love. 

94:. VI. THE LOVE OF THE SEX BELONGS TO THE EXTERNAL 

OB NATURAL MAN, AND HENCE IT IS COMMON TO EVERY ANIMAL. 

Every man is born corporeal, and becomes more and more in- 
teriorly natural, and in proportion as he loves intelligence he 
becomes rational, and afterwards, if he loves wisdom, he becomes 
spiritual. What the wisdom is by which a man becomes spiritual, 
will be shewn in the following pages, n. 130. Now as a man 
advances from knowledge into intelligence, and from intelligence 
into wisdom, so also his mind changes its form ; for it is opened 
more and more, and conjoins itself more nearly with heaven, and 
by heaven with the Lord ; hence it becomes more enamored of 
truth, and more desirous of the good of life. If therefore he 
halts at the threshold in the progression to wisdom, the form of 
his natural mind remains ; and this receives the influx of the 
universal sphere, which is that of the marriage of good and truth, 
in the same manner as it is received by the inferior subjects of 
the animal kingdom beasts and birds ; and as these are merely 
natural, the man in such case becomes like them, and thereby 
loves the sex just as they do. This is what is meant by the as- 
sertion, the love of the sex belongs to the external or natural 
man, and hence it is common to every animal. 

95. VII. B0T CONJUGIAL LOVE BELONGS TO THE INTERNAL 
OR SPIRITUAL MAN ; AND HENCE THIS LOVE IS PECULIAR TO MANf. 

The reason why conjugial love belongs to the internal or spiritual 
man is, because in proportion as a man becomes more intelligent 
and wise, in the same proportion he becomes more internal and 
spiritual, and in the same proportion the form of his mind is 
more perfected ; and this form receives conjugial love : for there- 
in it perceives and is sensible of a spiritual delight, which is 
inwardly blessed, and a natural delight thence arising, which 
derives its soul, life, and essence from the spiritual delight. 

96. The reason why conjugial love is peculiar to man, is 
because he only can become spiritual, he being capable of elevat- 
ing his intellect above his natural loves, and from that state of 
elevation of seeing them beneath him, and of judging of their 
quality, and also of amending, correcting, and removing tbem 

96 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 96 98 

No other animal can do this ; for the loves of other animals are 
altogether united with their inborn knowledge; on which ac- 
count this knowledge cannot be elevated into intelligence, and 
still less into wisdom ; in consequence of which every other ani- 
mal is led by the love implanted in his knowledge, as a blind 
pers m is led through the streets by a dog. This is the reason 
why conjugial love is peculiar to man ; it may also be called 
'native and near akiiti to him ; because man has the faculty of 
growing wise, with which faculty this love is united. 

97, v III. WITH MAN OONJUGIAL LOVE is IN THE LOVE OF THE 
SEX AS A GEM IN ITS MATRIX. As this however is merely a com- 
parison, we will explain it in the article which immediately fol- 
lows : this comparison also illustrates what was shewn just above, 
n. 94, 95, that the love of the sex belongs to the external 
or natural man, and conjugial love to the internal or spiritual 
man. 

98. IX. THE LOVE OF THE SEX WITH MAN is NOT THE ORIGIN 

OF CONJUGIAL LOVE, BUT ITS FIRST RUDIMENT; THUS IT IS LIKE 
AN EXTERNAL NATURAL PRINCIPLE, IN WHICH AN INTERNAL SPI- 
RITUAL PRINCIPLE is IMPLANTED. The subject here treated of is 
love truly conjugial, and not ordinary love, which also is called 
conjugial, and which with some is merely the limited love of the 
sex. Love truly conjugial exists only with those who desire 
wisdom, and who consequently advance more and more into 
wisdom. These the Lord foresees, and provides for them con- 
jugial love ; which love indeed commences with them from the 
love of the sex, or rather by it ; but still it does not originate in 
it ; for it originates in proportion to the advancement in wisdom 
and the dawning of the light thereof in man ; for wisdom and 
that love are inseparable companions. The reason why conjugial 
iove commences by the love of the sex is, because before a suit- 
able consort is found, the sex in general is loved and regarded 
with a fond eye, and is treated with civility from a moral 
ground : for a young man has to make his choice ; and while 
this is determining, from an innate inclination to marriage with 
one, which lies concealed in the interiors of his mind, his exter- 
nal receives a gentle warmth. A further reason is, because de- 
terminations to marriage are delayed from various causes even to 
riper years, and in the mean time the beginning of that love is as 
lust ; which with some actually goes astray into the love of the 
sex; yet with them it is indulged no further than may be con- 
ducive to health. This, however, is to be understood as spoken 
of the male sex, because it has enticements which actually inflame 
it; but not of the female sex/! From these considerations it is 
evident that the love of the sex is not the origin of love truly 
conjugial ; but that it is its first rudiment in respect to time, vet 
not in respect to end ; for what is first in respect to end, is nrst 
in the mind and its intention, because it is regarded as primary ; 

7 . &7 



98 101 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

but to this first there is no approaching unless successively 
through mediums, and these are not first in themselves, but only 
conducive to what is first in itself. 

99. X. DURING THE IMPLANTATION OF CONJUGIAL LOVE, 

THE LOVE OF THE SEX INVERTS ITSELF AND BECOMES THE 

CHASTE LOVE OF THE SEX. It is said that in this case the love 
of the sex inverts itself; because while conjugial love is coming 
to its origin, which is in the interiors of the mind, it sees the 
lo\ e of the sex not before itself but behind, or not above itself 
but beneath, and thus as somewhat which it passes by and 
leaves. The case herein is similar to that of a person climbing 
from one office to another through a great variety, till he reaches 
one which exceeds the rest in dignity ; when he looks back upon 
the offices through which he had passed, as behind or beneath, 
him ; or as when a person intends a journey to the palace of some 
king, after his arrival at his journey's end, he inverts his view in 
regard to the objects which he had seen in the way. That in 
this case the love of the sex remains and becomes chaste, and 
yet, to those who are principled in love truly conjugial, is sweeter 
than it was before, may be seen from the description given of it 
by those in the spiritual world, in the two MEMORABLE RELATIONS, 
n. 44, and 55. 

100. XL THE MALE AND THE FEMALE WERE CREATED TO 

BE THE ESSENTIAL FORM OF THE MARRIAGE OF GOOD AND TRUTH. 

The reason of this is, because the male was created to be the 
understanding of truth, thus truth in form ; and the female was 
created to be the will of good, thus good in form ; and there 
is implanted in each, from their inmost principles, an inclination 
to conjunction into a one, as maybe seen above, n. 88 ; thus the 
two make one form, which emulates the conjugial form of good 
and truth, it is said to emulate it, because it is not the same, 
but is like it; for the good which joins itself with the truth 
belonging to the man, is from the Lord immediately ; whereas 
the good of the wife, which, joins itself with the truth belonging 
to the man, is from the Lord mediately through the wife ; there- 
fore there are two goods, the one internal, the other external, 
which join themselves with the truth belonging to the husband, 
and cause him to be constantly in the understanding of truth, 
and thence in wisdom, by love truly conjugial : but on this sub- 
ject more will be said in the following pages. 

101. XII. MARRIED PARTNERS ARE THAT FORM IN THEIB 

INMOST PRINCIPLES, AND THENCE IN WHAT IS DERIVED FROM 
THOSE PRINCIPLES, IN PROPORTION AS THE INTERIORS OF THEIR 

MINDS ARE OPENED. There are three things of which every man 
consists, and which follow in an orderly connection, the soul, 
the nrind, and the body : his inmost k the soul, his middle ia 
the mind, and his ultimate is the body. Every thing which 
ftows from the Lord into a man, flows into his inmost principle, 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 101 -103 

which la the soul, ana aescends thence into his middle principle, 
which is the mind, and through this into his ultimate principle, 
which is the body. Such is the nature of the influx of the mar- 
riage of good and truth from the Lord with man : it flows imme- 
diately into his soul, and thence proceeds to the principles next 
succeeding and through these to t'he extreme or outermost : and 
thus conjointly ^all the principles constitute conjugial love. From 
an idea of this influx it is manifest, that two married partners are 
the form of conjugial love in their inmost principles, and thence 
in those derived from the inmost. 

102. But the reason why married partners become that form 
in proportion as the interiors of their minds are opened, is, be- 
cause the mind is successively opened from infancy even to 
extreme old age: for a man is born corporeal : and in proportion 
as the mind is^opened proximately above the body, he becomes 
rational ; and in proportion as his rational principle is purified, 
and^ as it were drained of the fallacies which flow in from the 
bodily senses, and of the concupiscences which flow in from 
the allurements of the flesh, in the same proportion it is opened; 
and this is affected solely by wisdom : and when the interiors of 
the rational mind are open, the man becomes a form of wisdom ; 
and this form is the receptacle of love truly conjugial. " The 
wisdom which constitutes this form, and receives this love, is 
rational, and at the same time moral, wisdom : rational wisdom 
regards the truths and goods which appear inwardly in man, not 
as its own, but as flowing in from the Lord; and moral wisdom 
shuns evils and falses as leprosies, especially the evils of lascivi- 
ousness, which contaminate its cornugial love." 

* * * J * * * 

103. To the above I shall add two MEMOBABLE BELATIONS ; 
the FIRST is this. One morning before sun-rise T was looking 
towards the east in the spiritual world, and I saw four horsemen 
as it were issuing from a cloud refulgent with the flame of the 
dawing day. On their heads they had crested helmets, on 
their arms as it were wings, and around their bodies light 
orange-colored tunics; thus clad as for expedition, they rose 
in their seats, and gave their horses the reins, which thus ran 
as if they had had wings to their feet. I kept my eye fixed on 
their course or flight, desiring to know where they were going ; 
and lo ! three of the horsemen took their direction towards three 
different quarters, the south, the west, and the north ; and the 
fourth in a short space of time halted in the east. "Wondering 
at all this, I looked up into heaven, and inquired where those 
horsemen were going ? I received for answer, u To the wise 
men in the kingdoms of Europe, who with clear reasoning and 
acute discernment discuss the subjects of their investigation, and 
are distinguished above the rest for their genius, that they may 
assemble together and explain the secret BESPEoriya THE OBKHN 



103, 104 CONJTJGIAL LOVE 

OF OONJTTGIAL I DA E, AND RESPECTING ITS VIRTUE 

It was then said from heaven, ""Wait awhile, and yon will see 
twenty-seven chariots ; three, in which are Spaniards ; three, in 
which are Frenchmen ; three, in which are Italians; three, in 
which are Germans ; three, in which are Dutchmen or Holland- 
ers ; three, in which are Englishmen ; three, in which are Swedes; 
three, in which are Danes ; and three, in which are Poles." In 
about two hours I saw the chariots, drawn by horses of a pale- 
red color, with remarkable trappings : they passed rapidly along 
towards a spacious house in the confines of the east and south, 
around which all alighted from their several chariots, and entered 
in with much confidence. Then it was said to me, " Go, and do 
yon also enter, and yon will hear." I went and entered : and on 
examining the house within, I saw that it was square, the sides 
looking to the four quarters : in each side there were three high 
windows of crystalline glass, the frames of which were of olive- 
wood ; on each side of the frames were projections from the walls, 
like chambers vaulted above, in which there were tables. The 
walls of these chambers were of cedar, the roof of the noble 
almng wood, and the floor of poplar boards. Near the eastern 
wall, where no windows were seen, there was set a table overlaid 
with gold, on which was placed a TURBAN set with precious 
stones, which was to be given as a prize or reward to him who 
should by investigation discover the secret about to be proposed. 
While my attention was directed to the chamber projections like 
closets near the windows, I saw five men in each from every 
kingdom of Europe, who were prepared and waiting to know the 
object for the exercise of their judgements. An angel then pre- 
sented himself in the middle of the palace, andsaid, "The object 
for the exercise of your judgements shall be RESPECTING- THE 

ORIGIN OF CONJUGIAL LOVE, AND RESPECTING ITS VIRTUE OB 

POTENCY. Investigate this and decide upon it ; and write your 
decision on a piece of paper, and put it into the silver urn which 
you see placed near the golden table, and subscribe the initial 
letter of the kingdom from which you come ; as F for French, 
B for Batavians or Hollanders, I for Italians, E for English, 
P for Poles, G for German, H for Spaniards (Hispani)^ D for 
Danes, S for Swedes." As he said this, the angel departed, 
saying, u I will return." Then the five men, natives of the same 
country, in each closet near the windows, took into consideration 
the proposed subject, examined it attentively, and came to a de- 
cision according to their respective talents and powers of judge- 
ment, which they wrote on a piece of paj>er, and placed it in the 
silver nrn, having first subscribed the initial letter of their king- 
dom. This business being accomplished in about three hours, 
the angel returned and drew the papers in order from the nrn, 
and read them before the assembly. 

104. From the FIRST PAPER which he happened to lay hold 
100 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 104 106 

of, he read as follows ; " We five, natives of the same country, in 
oui closet have decreed that the origin of conjugial love is from 
the most ancient people in the golden age, and that it was de- 
rived to them from the creation of Adam and his wife ; hence is 
the origin of marriages, and with marriages the origin of con- 
jiigial love. The virtue or potency of conjugial love we derive 
from no other source than climate or situation in regard to the 
sun, and the consequent heat of the country ; and we are con- 
tinued in this sentiment, not by vain conjectures of reason, but 
by evident proofs of experience, as by the case of the people who 
live under the line, or the equinoctial, where the heat of the day 
is intense, and by the case of those who live nearer to the line, 
or more distant from it ; and also from the co-operation of the 
sun's heat with the vital heat in the living creatures of the earth 
and the fowls of heaven, in the time of spring during prolifica- 
tion. Moreover, what is conjugial love but heat, which becomes 
virtue or potency, if the heat supplied from the sun be added to 
it?" To this decision was subscribed the letter H 3 the initial of 
the kingdom from which they were. 

105. After this he put his hand into the urn a SECOND TIME, 
and took out a paper from which he read as follows : " We, 
natives of the same country, in our lodge have agreed that the 
origin of conjugial love is the same with the origin of marriages, 
which were sanctioned by laws in order to restrain man's innate 
concupiscences prompting him to adultery, which ruins the soul, 
defiles the reason, pollutes the morals, and infects the body with 
disease : for adultery is not human but bestial, not rational but 
brutish, and thus not in any respect Christian but barbarous : * 
with a view to the condemnation of such adultery, marriages 
originated, and at the same time conjugial love. The case is 
the same with the virtue or potency of this love ; for it depends 
on chastity, which consists in abstaining from the rovings of 
whoredom : the reason is, because virtue or potency, with him 
who loves his married partner alone, is confined to one, and is 
thus collected and as it were concentrated ; and then it becomes 
refined like a quintessence from which all defilement is sepa- 
rated, which would otherwise be dispersed and cast away in 
every direction. One of us five, who is a priest, has also added 
predestination as a cause of that virtue or potency, saying, 4 Are 
not marriages predestinated? and this being the case, are not 
the progeny thence issuing and the means conducive thereto, 
predestinated also?' He insisted on adding this cause be- 
cause he had sworn to it." To this decision was subscribed 
the letter 13. On hearing it, a certain spirit observed with a 
smile, " How fair an apology is predestination for weakness or 
impotence!" 

10#. .Preoeutiy he drew from the urn a THIRD PAPEK, from 
which he read as follows ; " We, natives of the same country, 

101 



106 108 CONJUGULL LOVE 

in our department have deliberated concerning the causes of the 
origin of conjugial lore, and have seen this to be the principal, 
that it is the same with the origin of marriage, because con- 
jugial love had no existence before marriage ; ancUhe ground ol 
its existence is, that when any one is desperately in love with a 
virgin, he desires in heart and soul to possess her as being lovely 
above all things ; and as soon as she betroths herself to him he 
regards her as another self. That this is the origin of conjugial 
love, is clearly manifest from the fury of every man against his 
rivals, and from the jealousy which takes place in case of viola- 
tion. We afterwards considered the origin of the virtue^ or 
potency of this love; and the sentiments of three prevailed 
against the other two, viz., that virtue or potency with a married 
partner arises from some degree of licentiousness with the sex. 
They affirmed that they knew from experience that the potency 
of the love of the sex is greater than the potency of conjugial 
love." To this decision was subscribed the letter I. On hear- 
ing it, there was a cry from the table, "Kemove this paper 
and take another out of the urn." 

107. And instantly he drew out a FOURTH, from which he 
read as follows: "We, natives of the same country, under our 
window have come to this conclusion, that the origin of conjugial 
love and of the love of the sex is the same, the former being de- 
rived from the latter ; only that the love of the sex is unlimited, 
indeterminate, loose, promiscuous, and roving; whereas conjugial 
love is limited, determinate, fixed, regular, and constant; and 
that this love therefore has been sanctioned and established by 
the prudence of human wisdom as necessary to the existence of 
every empire, kingdom, commonwealth, and even society ; for 
without it men would wander like droves of cattle in fields and 
forests, with harlots and ravished females, and would fly from 
one habitation to another to avoid the bloody murders, violations, 
and depredations, whereby the whole human race would be in 
danger of being extirpated. This is our opinion concerning the 
origin of conjugial love. But the virtue or potency of conjugial 
love we deduce from an uninterrupted state of bodily health con- 
tinuing from infancy to old age ; for the man who always retains 
a sound constitution and enjoys a continual freedom from sick- 
ness, feels his vigor unabated, while his fibres, nerves, muscles, 
and sinews, are neither torpid, relaxed, nor feeble, but retain the 
full strength of their powers : farewell." To this decision was 
subscribed the letter E. 

108. FIFTHLY, he drew a paper out of the urn, from which 
he read as follows: "We, natives of the same country, at our 
table, from the rationality of our minds, have examined into the 
origin of conjugial love and of its virtue or potency; and from 
all the considerations which have presented themselves, we have 
geen and concluded upon no other origin of conjugial love than 

102 



ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 108, 109 

this ; that every man, from incentives and consequent incitements 
which are concealed in the interiors of his mind and body, after 
indulging in various desires of his eyes, at length fixes his mind 
and inclination on one of the female sex, until his passion is deter- 
mined entirely to her : from this moment his warmth is enkindled 
more and more, until at length it becomes a flame ; in this state 
the inordinate love of the sex is banished, and conjugial love 
takes its place. A youthful bridegroom under the influence of 
this flame, knows no other than that the virtue or potency of 
this love will never cease ; f :>r he wants experience and therefore 
knowledge respecting a state of the failure of his powers, and of 
the coldness of love which then succeeds to delights: conjugial 
love therefore has its origin in this first ardor before the nuptial 
ceremony, and from the same source it derives its virtue or 
potency ; but this virtue or potency changes its aspect after the 
nuptial ceremony, and decreases and increases ; yet still it con- 
tinues with regular changes, or with decrease and increase, even 
to old age, by means of prudent moderation, and by restraining 
the libidinous desires which burst forth from the lurking places 
of the mind not yet thoroughly purified : for libidinous desire 
precedes wisdom. This is our judgement concerning the origin 
and continuance of conjugial virtue or potency." To this deci- 
sion was subscribed the letter P. 

109. SIXTHLY, he drew out a paper, from which he read as 
follows: "We, natives of the same country, from the fellowship 
subsisting among us, have attentively considered the causes of 
the origin of conjugial love, and have agreed in assigning two ; 
one of which is the right education of children, and the other 
the distinct possession of inheritances. We have assigned these 
two, because they aim at and regard the same end, which is the 
public good : and this end is obtained, because infants conceived 
and born from conjugial love become proper and true children; 
and these in consequence of the natural love of the parents, 
exalted by the consideration of their offspring being legitimate, 
are educated to be heirs of all their parents' possessions both 
spiritual and natural. That the public good is founded on a 
right education of children and on a distinct possession of 
inheritances, is obvious to reason. Of the love of the sex 
and conjugial love, the latter appears as if it were one with 
the former, but it is distinctly different ; neither is the one love 
near to the other, but within it ; and what is within is more 
excellent than what is without : and we have seen that conjugial 
love from creation is within, and lies hid in the love of the sex, 
just as an almond does in its shell ; therefore when conjugial love 
comes out of its shell, which is the love of the sex, it glitters 
before the angels like a g^em, a beryl, and astroites. The reason 
of this is, because on conjugial love is inscribed the safety of the 
whole human race, which we conceive to be understood by the 

103 



109 111 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

public good. This is our judgement respecting the origin of this 
love, with respect to the origin of its virtue or potency, from a 
consideration of its causes, we have concluded it to be the deve- 
lopment and separation of conjugial love from the love of the 
Bex, which is effected by wisdom on the man's part, and by the 
love of the man's wisdom on the part of the wife : for the love of 
the sex is common to man and beast ; whereas conjugial love is 
peculiar to men : therefore so far as conjugial love is developed 
and separated from the love of the sex, so mr a man is a man and 
Dot a beast; and a man acquires virtue or potency from his love, 
as a beast does from his." To this decision was subscribed the 
letter G. 

110. SEVENTHLY, he drew out a paper from which he read aa 
follows : " We, natives of the same country, in the chamber under 
the light of our window, have found our thoughts and thence 
our judgements exhilarated by meditating on conjugial love ; for 
who is not exhilarated by this love, which, while, it prevails in the 
mind, prevails also through the whole body? We judge of the 
origin of this love from its delights ; for who in any case knows 
or has known the trace of any love except from its delight and 
pleasurableness ? The delights of conjugial love in their origins 
are felt as beatitudes, satisfactions, and happinesses, in theii 
derivations as pleasantnesses and pleasures, and in their ultimates 
as superlative delights. The love of the sex therefore originates 
when the interiors of the mind, and thence the interiors of the 
body, are opened for the influx of those delights ; but conjugial 
love originated at the time when, from entering into marriage 
engagements, the primitive sphere of that love ideally promoted 
those delights. The virtue or potency of this love arises from its 
passing, with its inmost principles, from the mind into the body ; 
for the mind, by derivation from the head, is in the body, while 
it feels and acts, especially when it is delighted from this love : 
hence we judge of the degrees of its potency and the regularity ol 
its alterations. Moreover we also deduce the virtue of potency 
from the stock whence a man is descended: if this be noble on 
the father's side, it becomes also by transmission noble with his 
offspring. That such nobility is generated, inherited and de- 
scends by transmission, is agreeable to the dictates of reason 
supported by experience." To this decision was subscribed the 
letter F. 

111. From the paper which came forth the EIGHTH in order, 
he read as follows : " We, natives of the same country, in our 
place of assembly have not discovered the real origin of conjugial 
love, because it lies deeply concealed in the sacred repositories 
of the mind. The most consummate vision cannot, by any intel- 
lectual effort, reach that love in its origin. We have made many 
conjectures; but after the vain exertion of subtle inquiry, we 
have been in doubt whether our conjectures might not be called 

104 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. Ill, 112 

rather trifling than judicious; therefore whoever is desirous to 
extract the origin of that love from the sacred repositories of his 
mind, and to exhibit it clearly before his eyesf let him go to 
Delphos. We have contemplated that love beneath its origin, 
and have seen that in the mind it is spiritual, and as a fountain 
from which a sweet stream flows, whence it descends into the 
breast, where it becomes delightful, and is called bosom love, 
which in itself is full of friendship and confidence, from a full 
inclination to reciprocality; and that when it has passed the 
breast, it becomes genial love. These and similar considerations, 
which a young man revolves in his mind while he is determining 
his choice to one of the sex, kindle in his heart the fire of conju- 
gial love ; which fiie, as it is the primitive of that love is its origin. 
In respect to the origin of its virtue or potency, we acknowledge 
no other than that love itself, they being inseparable companions, 
y^et still they are such that sometimes the one precedes and some- 
times the other. When the love precedes and the virtue or potency 
follows it, each is noble because in this case potency is the virtue 
of conjugiallove; but if the potency precedes and thelove follows, 
each is then ignoble ; because in this case the love is subordinate 
to carnal potency : we therefore judge of the quality of each from 
the order in which the love descends or ascends, and thus pro- 
ceeds from its origin to its proposed end." To this decision was 
subscribed the letter D. 

112. Lastly, or NINTHLY, he took up a paper, from which he 
read as follows : " We, natives of the same country, in our council- 
cbamber have exercised our judgement on the two points pro- 
posed, viz., the origin of conjugial love, and the origin of its 
virtue or potency. In the subtleties of inquiry respecting the 
origin of conjugial love, in order to avoid obscurity in our rea- 
sonings, we have distinguished between the love of the sex as 
being spiritual, natural, and carnal ; and by the spiritual love of 
the sex we have understood love truly conjugial, because this 
is spiritual ; and by the natural love of the sex we have under- 
stood polygamical love, because this is natural; and by the 
merely carnal love of the sex we have understood adulterous love 
because this is merely carnal. In exercising our judgements to 
examine into love truly conjugial, we have clearly seen thatthia 
love exists only between one male and one female, and that from 
creation it is celestial and inmost, the soul and father of all good 
loves, being inspired into the first parents, and capable of being 
inspired into Christians; it is also of such a conjunctive nature 
that by it two minds may become one mind, and two men 
(homines} as it were one man (homo}; which is meant by becom- 
ing one flesh. Tha this love was inspired at creation, is plain 
from these words in the book of creation, "And a man shall leave 
father and mother, and shall cleave to hi& wife; and they shall 1)6 
one flesh? Gen. ii. 24. That it can be inspired into Christians, 

105 



112115 CONJTOIAL LOVE 

is evident from these words, fi Jesus said, Hade ye not read, that 
he who made them from the beginning, made them male and 
female, and said, for this cause shall a man leave father and 
mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and they two shall le one 
flesh ? Wherefore they are no longer two lut one flesh? Matt. 
x j x> 4_6. So far in regard to the origin of conjugial love : but 
as to the origin of the virtue or potency of love truly conjugial, 
we conceive it to proceed from a similitude of minds and una- 
nimity ; for when two minds are conjugially united, their 
thoughts spiritually kiss each other, and these inspire into^ the 
body their virtue or potency." To this decision was subscribed 
the lettei S. 

113. There were standing behind an oblong stage in the 
palace, erected before the doors, some strangers from Africa, who 
cried out to the natives of Europe, "Permit one of us to deliver 
his sentiments respecting the origin of conjugial love, and respect- 
ing its virtue or potency." And immediately all the tables gave 
signs of assent with their hands. Then one of them entered 
and stood at the table on which the turban was placed, and said, 
44 You Christians deduce the origin of conjugial love from love 
itself; but we Africans deduce it from the God of heaven and 
earth. Is not conjugial love a chaste, pure, and holy love ? Are 
not the angels of heaven principled therein ? Is not the whole 
human race, and thence the whole angelic heaven, the seed of 
that love ? And can such super-eminent principle derive its 
existence from any other source than from God himself, the 
Creator and Preserver of the universe? You Christians deduce 
conjugial virtue or potency from various causes rational and 
natural ; but we Africans deduce it from the state of man's con- 
junction with the God of the universe. This state we call a state 
of religion ; but you call it a state of the church : for when the 
love is derived from that state, and is fixed and permanent, it 
must needs produce its own virtue, which resembles it, and thus 
also is fixed and permanent. Love truly conjugial is known only 
to those few who live near to God ; consequently the potency of 
that love is known to none else. This potency is described by 
the angels in the heavens as the delight of a perpetual spring." 

114. As he said these word, the whole assembly arose, and 
Lo ! behind the golden table on which lay the turban, there ap~ 
peaied a window that had not before been seen ; and through it 
was heard a voice, saying, U !HE AFBIOAN is TO HAVE THE 
IURBAN." The angel then gave it into his hand, but did not 
place it upon his head ; and he went home with it. The inha- 
bitants of the kingdoms of Europe then left the assembly and 
entered their chariots, in which they returned to their respec- 
tivej&cieties. 

^115. THE SECOND MEMOEABLE KELATIOH. Awaking from 
sleep at midnight, I saw at some elevation towards the east ac 
106 



ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 115 

angel holding in his right hand apaper, which appeared extremely 
bright, being illuminated by the light flowing from the sun. 
In the middle of the paper there was written in golden letters, 
THE MARRIAGE OF GOOD AND TRUTH. From the writing there 
darted forth a splendor which formed a wide circle about the 
paper. This circle or encompassing splendor appeared like the 
early dawn in spring. After this I saw the angel descending 
with the paper in his hand ; and as he descended the paper he- 
came less and less lucid, and the writing, which was THE MAB- 
BIAGE OF GOOD AND TRUTH, changed from a golden into a silver 
color, afterwards into a copper color, next into an iron color, and 
at length into the color of iron and copper rust : finally, I saw 
the angel enter an obscure mist, and through the mist descend 
upon the ground ; and here I did not see the paper, although he 
still held it in his hand. This happened in the world of spirits, 
in which all men first assemble after their decease. The angel 
then said to me, "Ask those who come hither whether they see 
me, or anything in my hand." There came a great number ; 
one company from the east, another from the south, another 
from the west, and another from the north ; and I asked those 
who came from the east and from the south, who in the world had 
applied themselves to literary pursuits, " Do you see any one 
here with me, and anything in his hand 2" They all said, 
" No." I then put the same question to those who came from 
the west and from the north, who in the world had believed in 
the words of the learned ; and these gave the same answer : 
nevertheless the last of them, who in the world had been, prin- 
cipled in simple faith grounded in charity, or in some degree of 
truth grounded in good, when the rest were gone away, said, 
that they saw a man with a paper, the man in a graceful dress, 
and the paper with letters written upon it ; and when they 
applied their eyes nearer to it, they said that they could read 
these 'words. The marriage of good and truth ; and they addressed 
the angel, intreating him to explain to them the meaning of* the 
writing. He said, " All things in the whole heaven and in the 
whole world, are a marriage of good and truth ; for all things 
whatever, both those which live and communicate life and those 
which do not live and do not communicate life, were created 
from and into the marriage of good and truth. There does not 
exist anything which was created into truth alone, or any thing 
which was created into good alone : solitary good or solitary 
truth is no' any thing ; but by marriage they exist and become 
something which derives its nature and quality from that of the 
marriage. In the Lord the Creator are divine good and divine 
truth in their very substance: the esse of his ^substance is divine 
good, and its existere is divine truth : in him also they are in 
their very essential union ; for in him they infinitely make a one : 
and since these two in the Creator himself are a one, therefore 

107 



115 CONJXJGIAL LOVE 

also they are a one in all things created from him ; hereby also 
the Creator is conjoined in an eternal covenant as of marriage 
with all things created from himself." The angel further said, 



LiLtL/ll . CLJLJ.U. iaXJ.JLV/t/ Li-lVJ ^AJ. I*A v^-i, A-IAW^ * ^. v ~-v. ~j -- 

doctrine, and religion, which is formed by the good of ^ life 
agreeable to the truth of doctrine, are with Christians derived 
solely from the Sacred Scripture, therefore it may manifestly 
appear, that the church in general and in particular is a mar- 
riage of good and truth ; (that this is the case, may be seen in 
the APOCALYPSE EEVEALED, n. 373, 483.) What has just been 
said concerning the marriage of good and truth, is applicable 
also to the MARRIAGE OF^ CHARITY AND FAITH; for good relates to 
charity, and truth to faith. Some of the spirits above-mentioned 
who did not see the angel and the writing, being still near, and 
hearing these things, said in an under tone, u Tes, we also com- 
prehend what has been spoken /" but the angel then said to them, 
"Turn aside a little from me and speak in like manner." They 
turned aside, and then said aloud, " It is not so" After this the 
angel spoke concerning the MARRIAGE OF GOOD AHD TRUTH with 
married pairs, saying, that if their minds were in that marriage, 
the husband being truth, and the wife the good thereof, they 
would both be in the delights of the blessedness and innocence, 
and thence in the happiness which the angels of heaven enjoy; 
and in this state the prolific principle of the husband would be 
in a continual spring, and thereby in the endeavour and vigor of 
propagating its truth, and the wife would be in a continual re- 
ception thereof from a principle of love. The wisdom which 
husbands derive from the Lord, is sensible of no greater delight 
1 ban to propagate its truths ; and thelove of wisdom which wives 
J ave from the Lord is sensible of no higher gratification than to 
receive those truths as it were in the womb, and thus to conceive 
them, to carry them in the womb, and to bring them forth. 
Spiritual prolifi cations with the angels of heaven are of this sort ; 
and if you are disposed to believe it, natural prolifications are 
also from the same origin. The angel, after a salutation of 
peace, raised himself from the ground, and passing through tha 
mist ascended into heaven ; and then the paper shone as before 
according to the degrees of ascent ; and behold 1 the circle, which 
before appeared as the dawn of day, descended and dispelled 
the mist which caused darkness on the ground, and a bi ighfc 
sunshine succeeded. 



108 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 116 



ON THE MARRIAGE OF THE LORD A\ T D THE CHURCH, 
AND ITS CORRESPONDENCE. 

116. THE reason why the marriage of the Lord and the 
church, together with its correspondence, is here also treated of, 
is, because without knowledge and intelligence on this subject, 
scarcely any one can know, that conjugial love in its origin is 
holy, ( spiritual, and celestial, and that it is from the Lord. It is 
said indeed by some in the church, that marriages hare relation 
to the marriage of the Lord with the church ; but the nature 
and quality of this relationship is unknown , in order therefore 
that this relationship may be exhibited to the understanding so 
as to be seen in some degree of light, it is necessary to treat par- 
ticularly of that holy marriage which has place with and in those 
who are the Lord's church. These also, and no others, are 
principled in love truly conjugial. But for the better elu- 
cidation of this arcanum, it may be expedient to consider the 
subject distinctly, as arranged under the following articles : 
I. The Lord in the Word is called the Bridegroom and 
Husband,, and the church the bride and wife / and the con- 
junction of the Lord with the church, and the reciprocal conjunc- 
tion of the church with the Lord, is called a marriage. II. 
The Lord is also called a Father, and the church, a mother. 
III. The offspring derivedfrom the Lord as a husland and ' father , 
and from the church as a wife and mother, are all spiritual ; 
and in the spiritual sense of the Word are understood bg sons 
and daughters, brothers and sisters, sons-in-law and daughters- 
in-law, and by other names of relations. IV. The spiritual off- 
spring^ which are "born from the Lord's marriage with the church 
are truths and goods ; truths, from whichare derived understand- 
ing, perception, and all thought / and goods, from which are 
derived love, charity, and all affection. V. From the marriage 
of aood and truth, which proceeds from the Lord in the way of 
influx, man (homo) receives truth, and the Lord conjoins good 
thereto / and thus the church is formed by the Lord with man. 
VI. The husband does not represent the Lord and the wife the 
church j because both together, the husband and the wife, consti 
tute the cfiurch. VII. Therefore there is not a correspondence of 
the husband with the Lord and of the wife with the church, in 
the marriages of the angels in the heavens and of men on earth. 
VIII. But there is a correspondence with conjugial love, seminar 
tion, jzrolification, the love of infants, and similar things which 
exist in marriages, and are derivedfrom them. IX, The Word 
is the medium of conjunction, because it is from the Lord, and 
therefore is the iord. X. The church is from the Lord, and exists 
with those who come to him, and live according to his precepts. 
XI. Gonjugial love is according to the state of the church, because 

109 



116 118 CONJTTGIAL LOVE 

it is according to the state of 'wisdom with man (homo). XII. And 
as the church is from the Lord, conjugial love is also from him. 
We proceed to the explanation of each article. 

117. I. THE LOED IN THE WORD is CALLED THE BRIDE- 

GEOOM AND KUSBAETD, AKD THE CHUKCH THE BKIDE AND WIFE ', 
AND THE CONJUNCTION OF THE LoBD WITH THE CHTTECH, AND 
THE RECIPROCAL CONJUNCTION OF THE CHURCH WITH THE LORD, 

is CALLED A MAEEiAGE. That the Lord in the Word is called 
Ihe Bridegroom and Husband, and the church the bride and 
wife, may appear from the following passages: " He that hath 
the BEIDE is the BRIDEGROOM ; "but the friend of the BRIDEGROOM, 
who standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth with joy because of the 
BRIDEGROOM'S volte? John iii. 29 : this was spoken by John the 
Baptist concerning the Lord. " Jesus said. So long as the BRIDE- 
GEOOM is with them, the SONGS OF THE NUPTIALS cannot fast : the 
days will come when the BEIDEGEOOM will he taken away from 
them, and then will they fast" Matt. ix. 15 ; Mark ii. 19, 20 ; 
Luke v. 34:, 35. " I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, prepared 
as a BEIDE adorned for HEE HUSBAND," Bev. xxi. 2. The New 
Jerusalem signifies the New Church of the Lord, as may be seen 
in the APOCALYPSE BEVEALED, n. 880, 881. " The angel said to 
John, Come, and I will shew thee the BEIDE, THE LAMB'S WIFE: 
and he shewed him the holy city. New Jerusalem" Bev. xxi. 9, 
10. " The time of the MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB is come, and HIS 
WIFE hath made herself ready. JBlessedare those who are called 
to the supper of the MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB," Rev. xix. 7, 9. 
The BEIDEGEOOM, whom the five prepared virgins went forth to 
meet, and with WHOM they entered in to the MARRIAGE, Matt. 
xxv. 1 10, denotes the Lord ; as is evident from verse 13, where 
it is said, " Watch, therefore ; because ye know neither the daj r 
nor the hour in which the SON or MAK will come :" not to 
mention many passages in the prophets. 

118. II. THE LOED is ALSO CALLED A FATHER, ASTD THE 
CHUECH, A MOTHEE. The Lord is called a Father, as ap- 
pears from the following passages : " Unto us a child is born ; 
unto us a son is given and his name shall be catted, Wonderful, 
Counsellor, GOD, THE FATHER OF ETERNITY, the Prince of 
Peace," Isaiah ix. 6. " Thou, JEHOVAH, art OUR FATHER, our 
REDEEMEE ; thy name is from an age" Isaiah Ixiii. 16. Again, 
a Jesu$ said, He that seeth ME, seeth the FATHER that sent ME," 
John xii. 45. " If ye have Jcnown ME, ye have Jcnown my FATHER 
also / and henceforth ye have known him, and have seen him" 
John xiv. 7. "Philip said, Shew us the FATHER: Jesus said 
wnto him, He that seeth me, seeth the FATHER ; how sayest thou 
then, Shew us the FATHEE ?" John xiv. 8, 9. " Jesus said, The 
FATHEE and I are one," John x. 30, "All things that the 
FATHER hath are MIKE," John xvi. 15 ; chap. xvii. 10. " The 
FATHER is in ME, and I nr THE FATHER," John x. 38 ; chap, xiv 

110 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 118 120 

10, 11, 20. That the Lord and his Father u-e one, as the soul 
and the body are one, and that Q-od the Father descended from 
heaven, and assumed the human (nature or principle), to redeem 
and save men, and that his human nature is what is called the 
Son, and is said to be sent into the world, has been fully shewn 
in the APOCALYPSE KEVEALED. 

119. The church is called a mother, as appears from the 
following passages : " Jehovah said, Contend with YOUR MOTHER : 
she is not MY WIFE, and I am not her HUSBAND," Hosea ii. 2, 5. 
" Thou art thy MOTHER'S daughter^ that loatheth her HUSBAND/' 
Ezek. xvi. 45. . " Where is the Mil of thy MOTHER'S divorcement, 
whom I have put away ? " Isaiah 1. 1. " Thy MOTHER was like a 
vine planted ly the waters, learing fruit " Ezek. xix. 10 ; speak- 
ing of the Jewish church, " Jesus stretching out his hand to the 
disvypleS) said, MY MOTHER and my brethren are those who hear 
the Word of God, and do it" Luke viii. 21 ; Matt. xii. 49, 50 ; 
Mark iii. 3335 : the Lord's disciples means the church. " There 
was standing at the cross of Jesus his mother : and Jesus seeing 
his mother and the diseiple whom he loved, standing 5y, he saitk 
unto his mother, Woman, "behold thy son / and he saith to the dis- 
ciple, JBehold thy mother : wherefore from that hour the diseiple 
took her unto his own" John xix. 25 27. This implies, that 
the Lord did not acknowledge Mary as a mother, but the church ; 
therefore he calls her Woman, and the disciple's mother. The 
reason why the Lord called her the mother of this disciple, or ot 
John, was, because John represented the church as to the goods 
of ^ charity, which are the church in real effect; therefore it is 
said, He took her unto his own. Peter represented truth and 
faith, James charity, and John the works of charity, as may be 
seen in the APOCALYPSE REVEALED, n. 5, 6, 790, 798, 879 ; and 
the twelve disciples together represented the church as to all its 
constituent principles, as may be seen, n. 233, 790, 903, 915. 

120. III. THE OFFSPRING- DERIVED FROM THE LORD AS A 

HUSBAND AND FATHER, AND FROM THE CHURCH AS A WIFE AND 
MOTHER, ARE ALL SPIRITUAL } AND IN THE SPIRITUAL SENSE OF 
THE WORD ARE UNDERSTOOD BY SONS AND DAUGHTERS, BROTHERS 
AND SISTERS, SONS-IN-LAW, AND DAUGHTERS-IN-LAW, AND BY 

OTHER NAMES OF RELATIONS. That no other than spiritual off- 
spring are born of the Lord by the church, is a proposition 
which wants no demonstration, because reason sees it to be self- 
evident ; for it is the Lord from whom every good and truth 
proceeds, and it is the church which receives them and brings 
them into effect ; and all the spiritual things of heaven and the 
church relate to good and truth. Hence it is that sons and 
daughters in the word, in its spiritual sense, signify truths and 
goods ; sons, truths conceived in the spiritual man, and born iu 
the natural ; and daughters, goods in like manner : therefore 
those who are regenerated by the Lord, are called in the Word 

111 



120 122 CONJUGIAL LOTE 

sons of God, sons of the kingdom, born of him ; and the Lord 
called the disciples sons : the male child, that the woman brought 
forth, and that was caught up to God, Eev. xii. 5, has a similar 
signification ; see APOCALYPSE REVEALED, n. 543. Since daugh- 
ters signify goods of the church, therefore in the Word mention 
is so frequently made of the daughter of Zion, the daughter of 
Jerusalem, the daughter of Israel, and the daughter of Judah ; 
by whom is signified not any daughter, but the affection of 
good, which is an affection of the church ; see also APOCALYPSE 
KEVEALED, n. 612. The Lord also calls those who are of his 
church, brethren and sisters ; see Matt. xii. 49, 50 ; chap, xxv 
40; chap, xxviii. 10; Mark iii. 35; Luke viii. 21. 

121. IV. THE SPIRITUAL OFFSPRING-, WHICH ARE BORN 

FROM THE LORD'S MARRIAGE WITH THE CHURCH, ARE TRUTHS 
AND GOODS J TRUTHS, FROM WHICH ARE DERIVED UNDERSTAND- 
ING, PERCEPTION, AND ALL THOUGHT ; AND GOODS, FROM WHICH 
ARE DERIVED LOVE, CHARITY, AND ALL AFFECTION. TLe reaSOll 

why truths and goods are the spiritual offspring, which are born 
of the Lord by the church, is, because the Lord is essential 
good and essential truth, and these in him are not two but one ; 
also, because nothing can proceed from the Lord but what is in 
him, and what he is. That the marriage of truth and good pro- 
ceeds from the Lord, and flows in with men, and is received 
according to the state of the mind and life of those who are of 
the church, was shewn in the foregoing section on the MARRIAGE 
OF GOOD AND TRUTH. The reason why by means of truths a 
man has understanding, perception, and all thought, and by 
means of goods has love, charity, and all affection, is, because all 
tilings of man relate to truth and good ; and there are two con- 
stituents of man the will and the understanding ; the will being 
the receptacle of good, and the understanding of truth. That 
love, charity and affection, belong to the will, and that perception 
and thought belong to the understanding, may appear without 
the aid of light arising from demonstration ; for tnere is a light 
derived from the understanding itself by which these proposi- 
tions are seen to be self-evident. 

122. V. FROM THE MARRIAGE OF GOOD AND TRUTH, WHICH 

PROCEEDS FROM THE LORD IN THE WAY OF INFLUX, MAN (JlOmO) 
RECEIVES TRUTH, AND THE LORD CONJOINS GOOD THERETO ; AND 
THUS THE CHURCH IS FORMED BY THE LORD WITH MAN. The 

reason why a man receives truth by virtue of the good and 
truth which proceed as a one from the Lord, is, because IIP 
eceives this as his own, and appropriates it to himself as his 
own ; for he thinks what is true as from himself, and in like 
manner speaks from what is true ; and this takes place because 
truth is in the light of the understanding, arid hence he sees it: 
and whatever he sees in himself, or in Iiis mind, he knows not 
whence it is i for he does not see the influx, as he sees those 
112 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 122 125 

objects which strike upon the bodily vision ; hence he supposes 
that it is himself. That it should appear thus, is granted by 
the Lord to him, in order that he may be a man (homo), and 
that he may have a reciprocal principle of conjunction : add to 
this, that every man is born a faculty of knowing, understanding, 
and growing wise ; and this faculty receives truths, whereby it 
has knowledges, intelligence, and wisdom. And since the female 
was created through the truth of the male, and is formed into 
the love thereof more arid more after marriage, it follows, that 
ehe also receives the husband's truth in herself, and conjoins it 
with her own good. 

123. The Lord adjoins and conjoins good to the truths 
which a man receives, because he cannot take good as of himself, 
it being no object of his sight, as it does not relate to light, but 
to heat, which is felt and not seen ; therefore when a man sees 
truth in his thought, he seldom reflects upon the good which 
flows into it from the love of the will, and which gives it life : 
neither does a wife reflect upon the good belonging to her, but 
upon the husband's inclination towards her, which is according 
to the assent of his understanding to wisdom : the good which 
belongs to her from the Lord, she applies, without the husband's 
knowing any thing respecting such application. From these 
considerations then it plainly appears, that a man receives truth 
from the Lord, and that the Lord adjoins good to that truth, 
according to the application of truth to use ; consequently as the 
man is desirous to think, and thence to live, wisely. 

124 The church is thus formed with a man by the Lord, 
because in such case he is in conjunction with the Lord, in good 
from Him, and in truth as from himself; thus he is in the 
Lord, and the Lord in him, according to the Lord's words in 
John xv. 4, 5. The case is the same, if instead of good we say 
charity, and instead of truth faith; because good is of charity, 
and truth is of faith. 

125. VI. THE HUSBAND DOBS HOT KEPJRESEOT THE LOSD, 

AND THE WIFE THE CHURCH; BECAUSE BOTH TOGETHER, THE HUS- 
BAND AND THE WIFE, CONSTITUTE THE CHUKCH. It is a COmmOU 

paying in the church, that as the Lord is the Head of the church, 
so the husband is the head of the wife ; whence it should follow, 
that the husband represents the Lord, and the wife the church ; 
but the Lord is the Head of the church; and man (homo), the 
man (vir) and the woman, are the church ; and still more the 
husband and wife together. With these the church is first im- 
planted in the man, and through him in the wife ; because the 
man with his understanding receives the truth of the church, and 
the wife from the man ; but if it be vice versa, it is not according 
to order : sometimes, however, this is the case ; but then it i* 
with men, who either are not lovers of wisdom, and consequently 
are not of the church, or who are in a servile dependence on the 

8 11B 



25 127 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

will of their wives. Something on this subject may be sees in 
the preliminary RELATIONS, n. 21. 

126. VII. THEREFORE THERE is NOT A CORRESPONDENCE 

OF THE HUSBAND WITH THE LORD AND OF THE WIFE WITH THE 
CHURCH, IN THE MARRIAGES OF THE ANGELS IN THE HEAVENS 

AND OF MEN ON EARTH. This follows as a consequence from 
what has just been said ; to which, nevertheless, it may be ex- 
pedient to add, that it appears as if truth was the primary con- 
stituent of the church, because it is first in respect to time: from 
this appearance, the prelates of the church have exalted faith, 
which is of truth, above charity, whch is of good ; in like manner 
the learned have exalted thought, which is of the understanding, 
above affection, which is of the will ; therefore the knowledge of 
what the good of charity and the affection of the will are, lies 
deeply "buried as in a tomb, while some even cast earth upon 
them, as upon the dead, to prevent their rising again. That the 
good of charity, notwithstanding, is the primary constituent of 
the church, may be plainly seen by those who have not closed 
the way from heaven to their understandings, by confirmations 
in favor of faith, as the sole constituent of the church, and in 
favor of thought, as the sole constituent of man. Now as the 
good of charity is from the Lord, and the truth of faith is 
with a man as from himself, and these two principles cause con- 
junction of the Lord with man, and of man with the Lord, such 
as is understood by the Lord's words, that He is in them, and 
they in Him, John xv. 4, 5, it is evident that this conjunction 
constitutes the church. 

127. VIII. BUT THERE IS A CORRESPONDENCE WITH CONJU- 
GIAL LOVE, SEMINATION, PROLIFICATIONT, THE LOVE OF INFANTS, AND 
SIMILAR THING-S WHICH EXIST IN MARRIAGES AND ARE DERIVED 

B'ROM THEM. These, however, are arcana of too deep a nature to 
enter the understanding with any degree of light, unless preceded 
by knowledge concerning correspondence ; nor is it possible, if 
this knowledge be wanting, so to explain them as to make them 
comprehensible. But what correspondence is, and that it exists 
between natural things and spiritual, is abundantly shown in the 
APOCALYPSE REVEALED, also in the ARCANA CCELESTIA, and spe- 
cifically in the DOCTRINE OF THE NEW JERUSALEM CONCERNING 
THE SACRED SCRIPTURE, and particularly in a MEMORABLE 
RELATION respecting it in the following pages. Before some 
knowledge on this subject is acquired, we will only present to the 
intellectual view, as in a shade, these few particulars : conjugal 
love corresponds to the affection of genuine truth, its chastity, 
purity, and sanctity; semination corresponds to the potency of 
truth ; prolification corresponds to the propagation of truth ; and 
the love of infants corresponds to the defence of truth and good. 
Kow as truth with a man (homo) appears as his own, and good 
is adjomed thereto from the Lord, it is evident that these eorre- 
114 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 127 129 

gpondences are those of the natural or external man with the spi- 
ritual or internal man : but some degree of light will be reflected 
on this subject fro in the MEMORABLE RELATIONS which follow 

128. IX. THE WORD is THE MEDIUM OF CONJUNCTION, 

BECAUSE IT IS FROM THE LORD, AND THEEEFORE IS THE LoRD. 

The Word is the medium of conjunction of the Lord with man 
(homo)) and of man with the Lord, because in its essence it is 
divine truth united to divine good, and divine good united to 
divine truth : that this union exists in every part of the Word in 
its celestial and spiritual sense, may be seen in the APOCALYPSBJ 
REVEALED, n. 373, 483, 689, 881 ; whence it follows, that the 
Word is the perfect marriage of good and truth ; and as it is from 
the Lord, and what is from him is also himself, it follows, that 
while a man reads the Word, and collects truths out of it, the 
Lord adjoins good. For a man does not see the goods which 
affect him in reading ; because he reads the Word from the un- 
derstanding, and the understanding acquires thence only such 
things as are of its own nature, that is, truths. That good is 
adjoined thereto from the Lord, is made sensible to the under- 
standing from the delight which flows in during a state of illus- 
tration ; but this takes place interiorly with those only who read 
the Word to the end that they may become wise ; and such per- 
sons are desirous of learning the genuine truths contained in the 
Word, and thereby of forming the church in themselves ; whereas 
those who read the Word only with a view to gain the reputation 
of learning, and those also who read it from an opinion that the 
mere reading or hearing it inspires faith and conduces to salva- 
tion, do not receive any good from the Lord; for the end pro- 
posed by the latter is to save themselves by the mere expressions 
contained in the Word, in which there is nothing of truth ; and 
the end proposed by the former is to be distinguished for their 
learning; which end has no conjunction with any spiritual 
good, but only with the natural delight arising from worldly 

flory. As the Word is the medium of conjunction, it is there- 
>re called the old and the new Covenant : a covenant signifies 
conjunction. 

129. X. THE CHURCH is FROM THE LORD, AND EXISTS 

WITH THOSE WHO COME TO HIM AND LIVE ACCORDING TO HIS 

PRECEPTS. It is not denied at this day that the church is the 
Lord's, and consequently that it is from the Lord. The reason 
why it exists with those who come to him, is, because his church 
in that part of the globe which is called Christian, is derived 
from the Word ; and the Word is from him, and in such a man- 
ner from him, that it is himself, the divine truth being therein 
united to the divine good, and this also is the Lord. This is 
meant by the Word, " which was with God^ and which was God, 
from which men have life and light, and which was made flesh" 
John i. 1 14:. Moreover, the reason why the church exists with 

115 



129, 130 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

those who come to him, is, because it exists with those who 
believe in him ; and to believe that he is God the^Saviour and 
Redeemer, that he is Jehovah our justice, that he is the door by 
which we are to enter into the sheepfold, that is, into the church, 
that he is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes 
to the Father but by him, that the Father and he are one, besides 
many other particulars which he himself teaches ; to believe these 
things, I say, is impossible for any one, except by influence from 
him ; and the reason why this is impossible unless he be ap- 
proached, is, because he is the God of heaven and earth, as he 
also teaches. "Who else is to be approached, and who else can 
be ? The reason why the church exists with those who live ac- 
cording to his precepts, is, because there is conjunction with none 
else; for he says, " He that hath my precepts, and doeththem, he 
it is that loveth me; and I will love kirn, and will make my abode 
with him : but he that doth not love me, doth not 'keep my pre- 
cepts" John xiv. 21 24. Love is conjunction; and conjunc- 
tion with the Lord is the church. 

130. XL CONJUGIAL LOVE IS ACCORDING TO THE STATE OF 
THE CHURCH, BECAUSE IT IS ACCORDING- TO THE STATE OF WIS- 
DOM WITH MAN (homo}. That conjugial love is according to the 
state of wisdom with man, has been often said above, and will be 
often repeated in the following pages : at present therefore we 
will shew what wisdom is, and that it makes one with the church. 
"There are belonging to man knowledge, intelligence, and wis- 
dom. Knowledge relates to information ; intelligence, to reason ; 
and wisdom to life. Wisdom considered in its fulness relates at 
the same time to information, to reason, and to life : information 
precedes, reason is formed by it, and wisdom by both ; as is the 
case when a man lives rationally according to the truths which 
he knows. "Wisdom therefore relates to both reason and life at 
once ; and it becomes (or is making) wisdom while it is a prin- 
ciple of reason and thence of life ; but it is wisdom whenitis made 
a principle of life and thence of reason. The most ancient people 
in this world acknowledged no other wisdom than the wisdom of 
life ; which was the wisdom of those who were formerly called 
SOPHI : but the ancient people, who succeeded the most ancient, 
acknowledged the wisdom of reason as wisdom ; and these were 
called PHILOSOPHERS. At this day, however, many call even 
knowledge, wisdom ; for the learned, the erudite, and the mere 
sciolists, are called wise; thus wisdom has declined from its 
mountain-top to its valley. But it may be expedient briefly to 
skew what wisdom is in its rise, in its progress, and thence in its 
full state. The things relating to the church, which are called 
spiritual, reside in the in most principles with man ; those relating 
to the public weal, which are called things of a civil nature, hold 
a place below these ; and those relating to science, to experience, 
and to art, which are called natural things, constitute their seat 

iia 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 130," 131 

or basis. The reason why the things relating to the church, 
which are called spiritual, reside in the inmost principles witii 
man, is, because they conjoin themselves with heaven, and by 
heaven with the Lord ; for no other things enter from the Lord 
through Leaven with man. The reason why the things relating 
to the public weal, which are called things of a civil nature, hold 
a place beneath spiritual things, is, because they have relation to 
the world, and conjoin themselves with it ; for statutes, laws, and 
rules, are what bind men, so that a civil society and state may be 
composed of them in a well-connected order. The reason why 
the things relating to science, to experience, and to art, which are 
called natural, constitute their seat or basis, is, because they con- 
join themselves closely with the five bodily senses ; and these 
senses are the ultimates on which the interior principles of the 
mind and the inmost principles of the soul, as it were sit or rest. 
Now as the things relating to the church, which are called spi- 
ritual, reside in the inmost principles, and as the things residing 
in the inmost principles constitute the head, and the succeeding 
things beneath them, which are called things of a civil nature, 
constitute the body, and the ultimate things, which are called 
natural, constitute the feet ; it is evident, that while these three 
kinds of things follow in their order, a man is a perfect man ; for 
in such case there is an influx like that of the things of the head 
into those of the body, and through the body into the feet ; thus 
spiritual things flow into things of a civil nature, and through 
them into natural things. Now as spiritual things are in the 
light of heaven, it is evident that by their light they illustrate the 
things which succeed in order, and by their heat, which is love, 
animate them ; and when this is the case the man has wisdom. 
As wisdom is a principle of life, and thence of reason, as was said 
above, it may be asked, What is wisdom as a principle of life ? 
In a summary view, it is to shun evils, because they are hurtful 
to the soul, to the public weal, and to the body ; and it is to do 
goods, because they are profitable to the soul, to the public weal, 
and to the body. This is the wisdom which is meant by the 
wisdom to which conjugial love binds itself; for it binds itself 
thereto by shunning the evil of adultery as the pest of the soul 
of the public weal, and of the body : and as this wisdom oiigi 
nates in spiritual things relating to the church, it follows, that 
conjugial love is according to the state of the church ; because it 
is according to the state of wisdom with men. Hereby also is 
understood what has been frequently said above, that so far as a 
man becomes spiritual, so far he is principled in love truly conju* 
gial ; for a man becomes spiritual by means of the spiritual 
things of the church." More observations respecting the wisdom 
with which conjugial love conjoins itself, may be seen below, n. 
163165. 

131. XII. AND AS THE CHURCH is FROM THE LORD, CON 

117 



181; 132 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

JUQTAL LOVE IS ALSO FROM HIM. As this follows as a C011S0- 

quence from what has been said above, it is needless to dwell 
upon the confirmation of it. Moreover, fhat love truly conjugial 
is from the Lord, all the angels of heaven testify ; and also that 
this love is according to their state of wisdom, and that their 
state of wisdom is according to the state of the church with 
them. That the angels of heaven thus testify, is evident from 
the MEMOBABLE RELATIONS annexed to the chapters, containing 

an account of what was seen and heard in the spiritual world. 
######## 

132. To the above I shall add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS. 
FIRST. I was conversing on a time with two angels., one from the 
eastern heaven and the other from the southern ; who perceiving 
me engaged in meditation on the arcana of wisdom relating to 
conjugial love, said, " Are you at all acquainted with the SCHOOLS 
OF WISDOM in our world ?" I replied, " Not as yet." And they 
said, " There are several ; and those who love truths from spi- 
ritual affection, or because they are truths, and because they are 
the means of attaining wisdom, meet together on a given signal, 
and investigate and decide upon such questions as require deeper 
consideration than common. 5 ' They then took me by the hand, 
saying, " Follow us ; and you shall see and hear : to-day the sig- 
nal for meeting is given." I was led across a plain to a hill ; 
and lo! at the foot of the hill was an avenue of palms continued 
even to its summit, which we entered and ascenaed : on the sum- 
mit or top of the hill was a grove, the trees of which, on an 
elevated plot of ground, formed as it were a theatre, within which 
was a court paved with various colored stones : around it in a 
square form were placed seats, on which the lovers of wisdom 
were seated ; and in the middle of the theatre was a table, on 
which was laid a sealed paper. Those who sat on the seats in- 
vited us to sit down where there was room : and I replied, " I 
was led here by two angels to see and hear, and not to sit down." 
Then those two angels went into the middle of the court to the 
table, and broke the seal of the paper, and read in the presence 
of those who were seated the arcana of wisdom written on the 
paper, which were now to be investigated and explained. They 
were written by angels of the third heaven, and let down upon 
he table. There were three arcana, FIEST, What is the image 
of God, and what the likeness of God, into which man (homo) 
was created \ SECOND, Why is not a man born into the know- 
ledge of any love, when yet beasts and bird?, from the highest to 
the lowest, are born into the knowledge of all their loves? 
THIRD, What is signified by the tree of life, and what by the tree 
of the knowledge of good and evil, and what by eating thereof? 
Underneath was written, Collect your opinions on these three 
questions into one decision, and write it on a new piece of paper, 
ind lay it on this table, and we shall see it: if the decision , on 

118 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 132 



examination, appear just and reasonable, each of yon shall receive 
a prize of wisdom. Having read the contents of the paper, the 
two angels withdrew, and were carried up into their respective 
heavens. 

Then those who sat on the seats began to investigate and 
explain the arcana proposed to them, and delivered their senti 
ments in order; first those who sat on the north, next those on 
the west, afterwards those on the south, and lastly those on the 
east. They began with the first subject of inquiry, WHAT is 

THE IMAGE OF GOD, AND WHAT THE LIKENESS OF* QoD, INTO 

WHICH MAN WAS CREATED ? J3ii- f before they proceeded, these 
words were read in the presence of them all out of the book 
of creation, " God said. Let us make man into OUR IMAGE, 
according to OTJB LIKENESS : and God created man into HIS 
IMAGE ; into the IMAGE OF GOD created he Mm" Gen. i. 26, 27. 
" In the day that G-od created man^ into the LIKENESS OF GOD 
made he him" Gen. v. 1, Those who sat on the north spoke 
first, saying, ^The image of God and the likeness of God are the 
two lives breathed into man by God, which are the life of the 
understanding; for it is written, 'Jehovah God breathed into 
Adam? $ nostril the soul of LIVES ; and man became a living soul? 
Gen. ii. 7 ; into the nostrils denotes into the perception, that the 
will of good and the understanding of truth, and thereby the 
soul of lives, was in him ; and since life from God was breathed 
into him, the image and likeness of God signify integrity de- 
rived from wisdom and love, and from justice and judgment in 
him," These sentiments were favored by those who sat to the 
west ; only they added, that the state of integrity then breathed 
in from God is continually breathed into every man since ; but 
that it is a man as in a receptacle ; and a rnan, as he is a 
receptacle, is an image and likeness of God. After this, the 
third in order, who were those who were seated on the south, 
delivered their sentiments as follows : " An image of God and a 
likeness of God are two distinct things ; but in man they are 
united from creation ; and we see, as from an interior light, that 
the image of God maybe destroyed by man, but not the likeness 
of God. This appears as clear as the day from this considera- 
tion, that Adam retained the likeness of God after that he had 
lost the image of God ; for it is written after the curse, * JBehold 
the man is as one of us, knowing good and evil* Gen. iii. 22 ; and 
afterwards he is called a likeness of God, and not an image of 
God, Gen. v. 1. But we will leave to our associates who sit on 
the east, and are thence in superior light, to say what is properly 
meant by an image of God, and what by a likeness of God, 
And then, after silence was obtained, those who sat on the east 
arose from their seats, and looked up to the Lord, and afterwards 
sat down again, and thus began : " An image of God is a re- 
ceptacle of (rod : and since God is love itself and wisdom itself, 

119 



132, 133 CONJTJGIAL LOVE 

an image of God is a receptacle of love and wisdom from God IB 
it; but a likeness of God is a perfect likeness and full appearance, 
as if love and wisdom are in a man, and thence altogether as hfe ; 
for a mail has no other sensation than that he loves and is wise 
from himself, or that he wills good and understands truth from 
himself; when nevertheless nothing of all this is from himself, 
but from God. God alone loves from himself and is wise from 
himself; because God is love itself and wisdom itself. The like- 
ness or appearance that love and wisdom, or good and truth, ane 
In a man as his. causes a man to be a man, and makes him 
capable of being conjoined to God, and thereby of living to 
eternity : from which consideration it follows, that a man is a 
man from this circumstance, that he can will good and under- 
stand truth altogether as from himself, and yet know and believe 
that it is from God ; for as he knows and believes this, God places 
his image in him, which could not be if he believed it was from 
himself and not from God." As they said this, being over- 
powered with zeal derived from the love of truth, they thus 
continued : " How can a man receive any thing of love and 
wisdom, and retain it, and reproduce it, unless he feel it as his 
own 2 And how ca'ii there be conjunction with God by love and 
wisdom, unless a man have some reciprocity of conjunction ? 
For without such a reciprocity conjunction is impossible; and 
the reciprocity of conjunction is, that a man should love God, 
and enjoy the things which are of God, as from himself, and yet 
believe that it is from God. Also, how can a man live eternally, 
unless he be conjoined to an eternal God? Consequently how 
can a man be a man without such a likeness of God in him?" 
These words met with the approbation of the whole assembly ; 
and they said, Let this conclusive decision be made from them, 
" A man is a recipient of God, and a recipient of God is an image 
of God ; and since God is love itself and wisdom itself, a man 
is a recipient of those principles ; arid a recipient becomes an 
image of God in proportion to reception ; and a man is a like* 
ness of God from this circumstance, that he feels in himself that 
the things which are of God are in him as his own ; but still 
from that likeness he is only so far an image of God, as he ac- 
knowledges that love and wisdom, or good and truth, are not his 
own in him, and consequently are not from him, but are only in 
God, and consequently from God." 

133. After this, they entered upon the next subject of dis- 
cussion, WHY IS NOT A MAN BORN INTO THE KNOWLEDGE OF 
ANY LOVE, WHEN YET BEASTS AND BIRDS, FROM THE HIGHEST TO 
THE LOWEST, ABE BORN INTO THE KNOWLEDGE OF ALL THEIR 

LOVES 2 They first confirmed the truth of the proposition by 
various considerations ; as in regard to a man, that he is born 
into no knowledge, not even into the knowledge of conjugial 
love ; and they inquired, and were informed by attentive ex- 
120 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 133, 134 

aminers, that an infant from connate knowledge cannot even 
move itself to the mother's breast, bnt must be moved thereto 
by the mother or nurse ; and that it knows only how to suck, 
and this in consequence of habit acquired by continual suction 
in the womb ; and that afterwards it does not know how to walk, 
or to articulate any human expression; no, nor even to express by 
its tone of voice the affection of its love, as the beasts do : and 
further, that it does not know what is salutary for it in the way 
of food, as all the beasts do, but catches at whatever falls in its 
way, whether it be clean or unclean, and puts it into its mouth. 
The examiners further declared, that a man without instruction 
is an utter stranger to every thing relating to the sexes and their 
connection ; and that neither virgins nor young men have any 
knowledge thereof without instruction from others, notwith- 
standing their being educated in various sciences : in a word, 
a man is born corporeal as a worm ; and he remains such, unless 
he learns to know, to understand, and to be wise, from others. 
After this, they gave abundant proofs that beasts, from the 
highest to the lowest, as the animals of the earth, the fowls of 
the air, reptiles, fishes, the small creatures called insects, are 
born into all the knowledges of the loves of their life, as into the 
knowledge of all things relating to nourishment, to habitation, 
to the love of the sex and prolification, and to the rearing of 
their young. This they confirmed by many wonderful things 
which they recollected to have seen, heard, and read, in the 
natural world, (so they called our world, in which they had 
formerly lived), in which not representative but real beasts 
exist. When the truth of the proposition was thus fully proved 
they applied all the powers of their minds to search out and 
discover the ends and causes which might serve to unfold and 
explain this arcanum ; and they all said, that the divine wisdom 
must needs have ordained these things, to the end that a man 
may be a man, and a beast a beast ; and thus, that the imper- 
fection of a man at his birth becomes his perfection, and the 
perfection of a beast at his birth is his imperfection. 

134. Those on the NORTH then began to declare their senti- 
ments, and said, " A man is born without knowledges, to the 
end that he may receive them all ; whereas supposing him to be 
born into knowledges, he could not receive any but those into 
which he was born, and in this case neither could he appropriate 
any to himself; which they illustrated by this comparison: a 
man at his first birth is like ground in which no seeds are im- 
planted, btit which nevertheless is capable of receiving all seeds, 
and of bringing them forth and fructifying them ; whereas a 
beast is like ground already sown, and tilled with grasses and 
herbs, which receives no other seeds than what are sown in it, or 
if it received any it would choke them. Hence it is, that a man 
reqiiires many years to bring him to maturity of growth ; during 

121 



134 CONJTOIAL LOVE 

which time he is capable of being cultivated like ground, and of 
bringing forth as it were grain, flowers, and trees of every kind ; 
whereas a beast arrives at maturity in a few years, during which 
no cultivation can produce any thing in him but what is born 
with him." Afterwards, those on the WEST delivered their senti- 
ments, and said, " A man is not born knowledge, as a beast is ', 
but he is born faculty and inclination ; faculty to know, and in 
clination to love ; and he is born faculty not only to know but 
also to understand and be wise ; he is likewise born the most 
perfect in clination to love not only the things relating to self 
and the world, but also those relating to God and heaven ; con- 
sequently a man, by birth from his parents, is an organ which 
lives merely by the external senses, and at first by no internal 
senses, to the end that he may successively become a man, first 
natural, afterwards rational, and lastly spiritual; which could 
not be the case if he was born into knowledges and loves, as the 
beasts are : for connate knowledges and affections set bounds to 
that progression ; whereas connate faculty and inclination set no 
such bounds: therefore a man is capable of being perfected in 
knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom to eternity." Those on the 
SOUTH next took up the debate, and expressed their sentiments 
as follows : " It is impossible for a man to take any knowledge 
from himself, since he has no connate knowledge; but he may 
take it from othe s ; and as he cannot take any knowledge from 
himself, so neither can he take any love ; for where there is no 
knowledge there is no love ; knowledge and love being undivided 
companions, and no more capable of separation than will and 
understanding, or affection and thought; yea, no more than 
essence and form : therefore in proportion as a man takes know- 
ledge from others, so love joins itself thereto as its companion. 
The universal love which joins itself is the love of knowing, of 
understanding, and of growing wise ; this love is peculiar to man 
alone, and not to any beast, and flows in from God. "We agree 
with our companions from the west, that a man is not born into 
any love, and consequently not into any knowledge; but that he 
is only born into an inclination to love, and thence into a faculty 
to receive knowledges, not from himself but from others, that is, 
by others : we say, by others, because neither have these received 
any thing of knowledge from themselves, but from God. "We 
agree also with pur companions to the north, that a man is first, 
born as ground, in which no seeds are sown, but which is capable 
of receiving all seeds, both useful and hurtful. To these con- 
siderations we add, that beasts are born into natural loves, and 
thereby into knowledges corresponding to them ; and that still 
they do not know, think, understand, arid enjoy any knowledges, 
but are led through them by their loves, almost as blind persons 
are led through the streets by dogs, for as to understanding they 
are blind ; or rather like people walking in their sleep, who act 
122 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS, 134:, 135 

from the impulse of blind knowledge, the understanding being 
asleep." Lastly, those on the EAST declared their sentiments, 
and said, " "We agree with our brethren in the opinions they 
have delivered, that a man knows nothing from himself, but from 
and by others, to the end that he may know and acknowledge 
that all knowledge, understanding, and wisdom, is from Grod ; 
and that a man cannot otherwise be conceived, born, and gene* 
rated of the Lord, and become an image and likeness of him ; for 
he becomes an image of the Lord by acknowledging and believ- 
ing, that he has received and does receive from the Lord all the 
good of love and charity, and all the truth of wisdom arid faith, 
and not the least portion thereof from himself; and he becomes 
a likeness of the Lord by his being sensible of those principles 
in himself, as if they were from himself. This he is sensible of, 
because he is not born into knowledges, but receives them ; and 
what he receives, appears to him as if it was from himself. This 
sensation is given him by the Lord, to the end that he may be 
a man and not a beast ; since by willing, thinking, loving, know- 
ing, understanding, and growing wise, as from himself, he re- 
ceives knowledges, and exalts them into intelligence, and by the 
use thereof into wisdom ; thus the Lord conjoins man to himself, 
and man conjoins himself to the Lord. This could not have 
been the case, unless it had been provided by the Lord, that man 
should be born in total ignorance." When they had finished 
speaking, it was the desire of all present, that a conclusion should 
be formed from the sentiments which had been expressed ; and 
they agreed upon the following: "That a man is born into no 
knowledge, to the end that he may come into all knowledge, 
and may advance into intelligence, and thereby into wisdom, and 
that he is born into no love, to the intent that he may come into 
all love, by application of the knowledges from intelligence, and 
into love to the Lord by love towards his neighbour, and may 
thereby be conjoined to the Lord, and by such conjunction be 
made a man, and live for ever." 

135. After this they took the paper, and read the third sub- 
ject of investigation, which was, WHAT is ^SIGNIFIED BY THB 

TREE OF LIFE, WHAT BY THE TBEE OF THB KNOWLEDGE OF GOOB 

AND EVIL, AND WHAT BY EATING THEREOF? and all the others 
ntreated as a favor, that those who were from the east would 
unfold this arcanum, because it required a more than ordinary 
depth of understanding, and because those who were from the 
east are in flaming light, that is, in the wisdom of love, this 
wisdom being understood by the garden of Eden, in which those 
two trees were placed. They said, " We will declare our senti- 
ments ; but as man does not take any thing from himself, but 
from -the Lord, therefore we will speak from him ; but yet from 
ourselves as of ourselves :" and then they continued, " A tree 
signifies a man, and the fruit thereof the good of life ; hence 

123 



135, 136 OONJUG1AL LOVE 

the tree of life signifies a man living from God, or God living 
in man; and since love and wisdom, and charity and faith, or 
good and truth, constitute the life of God in man, therefore these 
are signified by the tree of life, and hence man has eternal life : 
the like is signified hy the tree of life, of which it will be given 
to eat, Eev. il. 7 ; chap xxii. 2, 14=. The tree of the knowledge 
of good and evil signifies a man believing that he lives from 
himself and not from God ; thus that in man love and wisdom, 
charity and faith, that is, good and truth, are his and not God's ; 
believing this, because he thinks and wills, and speaks and acts 
to all appearance, as from himself: and as a man from this faith 
persuades himself, that God has implanted himself, or infused 
his divine into him, therefore the serpent said, " God doth Jcnow^ 
in the day that ye eat of the fruit of that tree^ your eyes will be 
opened^ andye will be as God, knowing good and evil" Gen. iii. 5. 
Eating of those trees signifies reception and appropriation ; eating 
of the tree of life, the reception of life eternal, and eating of the 
tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the reception of damna- 
tion ; therefore also both Adam and his wife, together with the 
serpent, were cursed ; the serpent means the devil as to self-love 
and the conceit of his own intelligence. This love is the pos- 
sessor of that tree ; and the men who are in conceit, grounded in 
that love, are those trees. Those persons, therefore, are griev- 
ously mistaken who believe that Adam was wise and did good 
from himself, and that this was his state of integrity ; when 
yet Adam himself was cursed by reason of that belief; for this is 
signified by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil ; 
therefore he then fell from the state of integrity in which he had 
been, in consequence of believing that he was wise and did good 
from God and not at all from himself; for this is meant by 
eating of the tree of life. The Lord alone, when he was in the 
world, was wise and did good from himself; because the essen- 
tial divine from birth was in him and was his; therefore also 
from his own ability lie was made the Redeemer and Saviour. 55 
From all these considerations they came to this conclusion, 
" That by the tree of life, and the tree of the knowledge of good 
and evil, and eating thereof, is signified that life for man is God 
in him, and that in this case he has heaven and eternal life; but 
that death for man is the persuasion and belief, that life for him 
is not God but self; whence he has hell and eternal death, which 
is condemnation." 

136. After this they looked into the paper left by the angels 
upon the table, and saw written underneath, COLLECT TOUB 
OPINIONS OK THESE THEEE QUESTIONS INTO ONE DECISION* 
Then they collected them, and saw that they cohered in one 
series, and that the series or decision was this, "That man is 
created to receive love and wisdom from God, and yet to all 
appearance as from himself: and this for the sake of reception 
124 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 136, 137 

and conjunction : and that therefore a man is not bora into any 
love, or into any knowledge, and also not into any ability of lov- 
ing and growing wise from himself; therefore if he ascribes all 
the good of love and truth of wisdom to God, he becomes a 
living man; but if he ascribes them to himself, he becomes a 
dead man." These words they wrote on a new piece of paper, 
and placed it on the table : and lo 1 on a sudden the angels ap 
peared in bright light, and carried the paper a way into heaven 
and after it was read there, those who sat on the seats heard 
these words from thence, ""Well, well;" and instantly there 
appeared a single angel as it were flying from heaven, with two 
wings about his feet, and two about his temples, having in his 
hand prizes, consisting of robes, caps, and wreaths of laurel ; 
and he alighted on the ground, and gave those who sat on the 
north robes of an opaline color ; those who sat on the wesi 
robes of scarlet color ; those who sat on the south caps whose 
borders were ornamented with bindings of gold and pearls, and 
which on the left side upwards were set with diamonds cut in 
the form of flowers ; but to those who sat to the east he gave 
wreaths of laurel, intermixed with rubies and sapphires. Then 
all of them, adorned with their respective prizes, went home 
from the school of wisdom ; and when they shewed themselves to 
their wives, their wives came to meet them, being distinguished 
also with ornaments presented to them from heaven ; at which 
the husbands wondered. 

137. THE SECOND MEMOEABLB BELATION. On a time when 
I was meditating on conjugial love, lo ! there appeared at a dis- 
tance two naked infants with baskets in their hands, and turtle- 
doves flying around them ; and on a nearer view, they seemed 
as if they were naked, handsomely ornamented with garlands ; 
chaplets of flowers decorated their heads, and wreaths of liles 
and roses of a hyacinthine blue, hanging obliquely from the 
shoulders to the loins, adorned their bosoms ; and round about 
both of them there was as it were a common band woven of small 
leaves interspersed with olives. But when they came nearer, 
they did not appear as infants, or naked, but as two persons in 
the prime of their age, wearing cloaks and tunics of shining silk, 
embroidered with the most beautiful flowers : and when they 
were near me, there breathed forth from heaven through them 
a vernal warmth, attended with an odoriferous fragrance, like 
what arises from gardens and fields in the time of spring. They 
were two married partners from heaven, and they accosted me; 
and because I was musing on what I had just seen, they in- 
quired, " What did you see ?" And when I told them that at 
fifst they appeared to me as naked infants, afterwards as infants 
decorated with garlands, and lastly as grown up persons in em- 
broidered garments, and that instantly I experienced a vernal 
warmth with its delights, they smiled pleasantly, and said, " In 



1ST CONJUaiAL LOVE 



the way we did not seem to ourselves as infants, or naked, 01 
adorned with garlands, but constantly in the same appearance 
which we now nave : thus at a distance was represented our con- 
jugial love ; its state of innocence by our seeming like naked 
infants, its delights by garlands, and the same delights now by 
our cloaks and tunics being embroidered with flowers ; and as 
you said that, as we approached, a vernal warmth breathed on 
you, attended with its pleasant fragrance as from a garden, we 
will explain to you the reason of all this." They said, "We have 
now been married partners for ages, and constantly in the prime 
of our age in which you now see us : our first state was like the 
first state of a virgin and a youth, when they enter into consoci- 
ation by marriage ; and we then believed, that this state was 
the very essential blessedness of our life ; but we were informed 
by others in our heaven, and have since perceived ourselves, that 
this was a state of heat not tempered by light ; and that it is 
successively tempered, in proportion as the husband is perfected 
in wisdom, and the wife loves that wisdom in the husband; and 
that this is effected by and according to the uses which each, by 
mutual aid, affords to society ; also that delights succeed accord- 
ing to the temperature of heat and light ; or of wisdom and its 
love. The reason why on our approach there breathed on you as 
it were a vernal warmth, is, because conjugial love and that 
warmth in our heaven act in unity; for warmth with us is love; 
and the light, wherewith warmth is united, is wisdom ; and use 
is as it were the atmosphere which contains each in its bosom. 
What are heat and light without that which contains them ? In 
like manner, what are love and wisdom without their use ? In 
such case there is nothing conjugial in them, because the subject 
is wanting in which they should exist to produce it. In heaven 
where there is vernal warmth, there is love truly conjugial ; 
because the vernal principle exists only where warmth is equally 
united to light, or where warmth and light are in equal propor- 
tions; and it is our opinion, that as warmth is delighted with 
light, and vice versa, so love is delighted with wisdom, and wis- 
dom in its turn with love." He further added, " With us in 
heaven there is perpetual light, and on no occasion do the shades 
of evening prevail, still less is there darkness; because our sun 
does not set and rise like yours, but remains constantly in a 
middle altitude between the zenith and the horizon, which, as 
you express it, is at an elevation of 45 degrees. Hence, the heat 
and light proceeding from our sun cause perpetual spring, and a 
perpetual vernal warmth inspires those with whom love is united 
with wisdom in just proportion ; and our Lord, by the eternal 
union of heat and light, breathes nothing but uses : hence also 
come the germinations of your earth, and the connubial associa- 
tions of your birds and animals in the spring ; for the verna] 
warmth opens their interiors even to the inmost, which are called 
126 



ANN ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 137, 138 

tlieir souls, and affects them, and communicates to them its con- 
jugial principle, and causes their principle of prolifi cation to come 
into its delights, in consequence of a continual tendency to pro- 
duce fruits of use, which use is the propagation of their kind. 
But with men (homines) there is a perpetual influx of vernal 
warmth from the Lord ; wherefore tney are capable of enjoying 
marriage delights at all times, even in the midst of winter ; for 
the males of the human race were created to be recipients of 
light, that is, of wisdom from the Lord, and the females to be 
recipients of heat, that is, of the love of the wisdom of the male 
from the Lord. Hence then it is, that, as we approached, there 
breathed on you a vernal warmth attended with an odoriferous 
fragrance, like what arises from gardens and fields in the spring. 3 ' 
As he said this, he gave me his right hand, and conducted me to 
houses inhabited by married partners in a like prime of tlieir age 
with himself and his partner; and said, "These wives, who now 
seem like young virgins, were in the world infirm old women ; 
and their husbands, who now seem in the spring of youth, were 
in the world decrepit old men ; and all of them were restored by 
the Lord to this prime of their age, because they mutually loved 
each other, and from religious motives shunned adulteries as 
enormous sins:" and he added, "ITo one knows the blessed 
delights of conjugial love, unless he rejects the horrid delights of 
adultery ; and no one can reject these delights, unless he is under 
the influence of wisdom from the Lord ; and no one is under the 
influence of wisdom from the Lord, unless he performs uses from 
the love of uses." I also saw on this occasion their house uten- 
sils, which were all in celestial forms, and glittered with gold, 
which had a flaming appearance from the rubies with which it 
was studded. 



ON THE CHASTE PRINCIPLE AND THE NON-CHASTE. 

138. As we are yet only at the entrance of our subject re- 
specting conjugial love specifically considered, and as conjugial 
love cannot be known specifically, except in a very indistinct and 
obscure manner, unless its opposite, which is the unchaste prin- 
ciple, also in some measure appear; and as this unchaste prin- 
ciple appears in some measure, or in a shade, when the chaste 
principle is described together with the non- chaste, non-chastity 
being only a removal of what is unchaste from what is chaste ; 
therefore we will now proceed to treat of the chaste principle and 
the non-chaste. But the unchaste principle, which is altogether 
opposite to the chaste, is treated of in the latter part of this 

127 



138 14$ CONJUGIAL LOVE 

work, entitled ADULTEROUS LOYE AND ITS SINFUL PLEASURES 3 
where it is fully described with all its varieties. But what the 
unchaste principle is, and what the non-chaste, and with what 
persons each of them prevails, shall be illustrated in the follow- 
ing order: I. The chaste principle and the non-chaste are predi- 
cated only of marriages and of such things as relate to marriages. 
II. The chaste principle is predicated only of monoc/amical mar- 
riages ', or of the marriage of one man with one wffe. III. The 
Christian conjugial principle alone is chaste. I v . Love truly 
Gonjugial is essential chastity. Y. All the delights of love truly 
conjugial, even the ultimate, are chaste. YI. With those who are 
made spiritual bytheLord^ conjugial love is more and more puri- 
fied and rendered chaste. YII. The chastity of marriage exists 
o.y a total renunciation of whoredoms from a principle of religion. 
YIIL Ghastity cannot be predicated of infants, or of boys and 
girls, or of young men ana virgins "before they feel in themselves 
the love of the sex. IX. Chastity cannot bepredicated of eunuchs 
so born^ or of eunuchs so made. X. Chastity cannot bepredicated 
of those who do not believe adulteries to be evils in regard to re- 
ligion and still less of those who do not believe them to be hurt- 
ful to society. XI. Chastity cannot be predicated of those who 
abstain from adulteries only for various external reasons. XII. 
Chastity cannot bepredicated of those who believe marriages to 
be unchaste. XIIL Chastity cannot be predicated of those who 
have renounced marriage by vows of perpetual celibacy, unless* 
there be and remain in them the love of a life truly conjugial 
XIY. A state of marriage is to be preferred to a state of celibacy 
We will now proceed to an explanation of each article. 

139. I. THE CHASTE PRINCIPLE AHD THE NON-CHASTE ABE 

PREDICATED ONLY OF MARRIAGES AND OF SUCH THINGS AS RE- 
LATE TO MARRIAGES. The reason of this is, because, as will be 
shewn presently, love truly conjugial is essential chastity ; arid 
the love opposite to it, which is called adulterous, is essential 
unchastity; so far therefore as any one is purified from the latter 
love, so far he is chaste ; for so far the opposite, which is des- 
tructive of chastity, is taken away ; whence it is evident that the 
purity of conjugial love is what is called chastity. Nevertheless 
there is a conjugial love which is not chaste, and yet it is not un- 
chastity ; as is the case with married partners, who, for various 
external reasons, abstain from the effects of lasciviousness so as 
not to think about them ; howbeit, if that love is not purified in 
their spirits, it is still not chaste ; its form is chaste, but it has 
tDt in it a chaste essence. 

140. The reason why the chaste principle and the non- chaste 
are predicated of such things as relate to marriages, is, because 
the conjugial principle is inscribed on both sexes from inmost 
principles to ultimates; and a man's quality as to his thoughts 
and affections, and consequently as to his bodily actions and 

128 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 14:0 142 

behaviour, is according thereto. That this is the case, appears 
more evidently from such as are unchaste. The unchaste prin 
ciple abiding in their minds is heard from the tone of their voice 
in conversation, and from their applying whatever is said, even 
though it be chaste, to wanton and loose ends ; (the tone of the 
voice in conversation is grounded in the will-affection, and the 
conversation itself is grounded in the thought of the understand- 
ing ;) which is a proof that the will and the understanding, with 
everything belonging to them, consequently the whole mind, and 
thence everything belonging to the body, from inmost principles 
to ultimates, abound with what is unchaste. I have been in- 
formed by the angels, that, with the greatest hypocrites, the 
unchaste principle is perceivable from hearing their conversa- 
tion, however chastely they ma} r talk, and also is made sensible 
from the sphere that issues from them ; which is a further proof 
that unchastity resides in the inmost principles of their minds, 
and thence in the inmost principles of their bodies, and that the 
latter principles are exteriorly covered like a shell painted with 
figures of various colors. That a sphere of lasciviousness issues 
forth from the unchaste, is manifest from the statutes prescribed 
to the sons of Israel, ordaining that everything should be unclean 
that was touched even by the hand of those who were defiled by 
eiich unchaste persons. From these considerations it may be 
concluded that the case is similar in regard to the chaste, viz., 
that with them everything is chaste from inmost principles to 
ultimates, and that this is an effect of the chastity of conjugial 
love. Hence it is, that in the world it is said, " "to the pure all 
things are pure, and to the defiled all things are defiled*" 

144. THE CHASTE PRINCIPLE is PBEDICATED ONLY OF MONO- 

GAMICAL MARRIAGES, OR OF THE MARRIAGE OF ONE MAN WITH 

ONE WIFE. The reason of this is, because with them conjugial 
love does not reside in the natural man, but enters into the spi- 
ritual man, and successively opens to itself a way to the essential 
spiritual marriage, or the marriage of good and truth, which is 
its origin, and conjoins itself therewith ; for that love enters 
according to the inc**e?e of wisdom, which is according to 
the implantation of the church from the Lord, as has been 
abundantly shewn above. This cannot be effected with j>olyga- 
mists ; for they divide conjugial love ; and this love when divided, 
is not unlike the love of the sex, which in itself is natural ; but 
on this subject something worthy of attention may be seen io 
the section on POLYGAMY. 

142. Ill, THE CHRISTIAN CONJUGIAL PRINCIPLE ALONE is 
CHASTE, This is, because love truly conjugial keeps pace with 
the state of the church in man (homo\ and because the state of 
the church is from the Lord, as has been shewn in the foregoing 
section, n. 130, 131, and elsewhere; also because the church in 
its genuine truths is in the Word, and the Lord is there present 

9 



142 144 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

in those truths. From these considerations it follows, that the 
chaste coiyugial principle exists nowhere but in the Christian 
world, and still that there is a possibility of its existing elsewhere. 
By the Christian conjugial principle we mean the marriage of one 
man with one wife. That this conjugial principle is capable of 
being ingrafted into Christians, and of being transplanted heredi 
tarily into the offspring from parents who are principled in love 
truly conjugial, and that hence both the faculty and the inclina- 
tion to grow wise in the things of the church and of heaven may 
become connate, will be seen in its proper place. Christians, if 
they marry more wives than one, commit not only natural but 
also spiritual adultery : this will be shewn in the section on 

POLYGAMY. 

143, IY, LOVE TETJLY CONJUGIAL IS ESSENTIAL CHASTITY. 

The reasons for this are, 1. Because it is from the Lord, and 
corresponds to the marriage of the Lord and the church. 2. 
Because it descends from the marriage of good and truth. 3. 
Because it is spiritual, in proportion as the church exists with 
man (homo}. 4. Because it is the foundation and head of all 
celestial and spiritual loves. 5. Because it is the orderly 
seminary of the human race, and thereby of the angelic heaven. 
6. Because on this account it also exists with the angels of hea- 
ven, and gives birth with them to spiritual offspring, which 
are love and wisdom. 7. And because its uses are thus more 
excellent than the other uses of creation. From these conside- 
rations it follows, that love truly conjugial, viewed from its 
origin and in its essence, is pure and holy, so that it may be 
called purity and holiness, consequently essential chastity : but 
that nevertheless it is not altogether pure, either with men or 
angels, may be seen below in article V L, n. 146. 

144. Y. ALL THE DELIGHTS OF LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, 

EVEN THE ULTIMATE, AEE CHASTE. TlllS follows from what 

has been above explained, that love truly conjugial is essential 
chastity, and from the considerations that delights constitute its 
life. * That the delights of this love ascend and enter heaven, 
and in the way pass through the delights of the heavenly loves, 
in which the angels of heaven are principled ; also, that they 
conjoin themselves with the delights of the conjugial love of the 
angels, has been mentioned above. Moreover, I have heard it 
declared by the angels, that they perceive those delights with 
themselves to be exalted and filled, while they ascend from chaste 
marriages on the earths : and when some by-standers, who were 
unchaste, inquired concerning the ultimate delights whether 
they were chaste, they assented and said, " How should it be 
otherwise ? Are not these the delights of true conjugial love in 
their fulness?" The origin, nature, and quality of the delights 
of this love, may be seen above, n. 69 : and also in the MEMO 
BAJBLE RELATIONS, especially those which follow. 
130 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 145, 14-6 

145 VI. WITH THOSE WHO ARE MADE SPIRITUAL BY THE 

LORD, CONJUGIAL LOVE 18 MORE AND MORE PURIFIED AND 

RENDERED CHASTE. The reasons for this are, 1. Because the 
first love, by which is meant the love previous to the nuptials 
and immediately after them, partakes somewhat of the love of 
the sex, and thus of the ardor belonging to the body not as yet 
moderated by^ the love of the spirit 2. Because a man (homo) 
from natural is successively mac 3 spiritual ; for he becomes spi- 
ritual in proportion as his rational principle, which is fche medium 
between heaven and the world, begins to drive a soul from influx 
out of heaven, which is the case so far as it is affected and de- 
lighted with wisdom ; concerning which wisdom see above, n. 
ISO ; and in proportion as this is effected, in the same propor- 
tion his mind is elevated into a superior aura, which is the con- 
tinent of celestial light and heat, or, what is the same, of the 
wisdom and love in which the angels are principled ; for hea- 
venly light acts in unity with wisdom, and heavenly heat with 
love ; and in proportion as wisdom and the love thereof increase 
with married pairs, in the same proportion conjugial love is puri- 
fied with them ; and as this is effected successively, it follows 
that conjugial love is rendered more and more chaste. This 
spiritual purification may be compared with the purification 
of natural spirits, which is effected by the chemists, and is 
called defecation, rectification, castigation, acution, decanta- 
tion, and sublimation ; and wisdom purified may be compared 
with alcohol, which is a highly rectified spirit. 3. Now as spi- 
ritual wisdom in itself is of such a nature that it becomes more 
and more warmed with the love of growing wise, and by virtue 
of this love increases to eternity ; and as this is effected in pro- 
portion as it is perfected by a kind of defecation, castigation, 
rectification, acution, decantation, and sublimation, and this 
by elevating and abstracting the intellect from the fallacies 
of the senses, and the will from the allurements of the body ; 
it is evident that conjugial love, whose parent is wisdom, is in 
like manner rendered successively more and more pure, and 
thereby chaste. That the first state of love between married 
partners is a state of heat not yet tempered by light ; but that 
it is successively tempered in proportion as the husband is per- 
fected in wisdom, and the wife loves it in her husband, may bo 
seen in the MEMORABLE RELATION, n. 137. 

146. It is however to be observed, that there is no conjugial 
love altogether chaste or pure either with men (homines) or with 
angels; there is still somewhat not chaste or not pure which 
adjoins or subjoins itself thereto ; but this has a different origin 
from that which gives birth to what is unchaste : for with the 
angels the chaste principle is above and the non-chaste beneath , 
and there is as it were a door with a hinge interposed by the 
Lord, which is opened by determination, and is carefully pro 

131 



146 148 CONJUOIAL LOVE 

vented from standing open, lest the one principle should pass 
into the other, and they should mix together : for the natural 
principle of man from his birth is defiled and fraught with evils ; 
whereas his spiritual principle is not so, because its birth is from 
the Lord, for it is regeneration; and regeneration is a successive 
separation from the evils to which a man is naturally inclined. 
That no love with either men or angels is altogether pure, or 
can be pure ; but that the end, purpose, or intention of the 
will, is principally regarded by the Lord : and that therefore so 
fai as a man is principled in a good end, purpose, or intention, 
and perseveres therein, so far he is initiated into purity, and so 
far he advances and approaches towards purity, may be seen 
above, n. 71. 

147. VII. THE CHASTITY OF MARRIAGE EXISTS BY A TOTAL 

EEFDISrCIATION' OF WHOREDOMS FEOM A PRINCIPLE OF RELIGION. 

The reason of this is, because chastity is the removal of unchas- 
tity ; it being a universal law, that so far as any one removes 
evil, so far a capacity is given for good to succeed in its place ; 
and further, so far as evil is hated, so far good is loved ; and 
also vie versa / consequently, so far as whoredom is renounced, 
so far the chastity of marriage enters. That conjugial love is 
purified and rectified according to the renunciation of whore- 
doms, every one sees from common perception as soon as it is 
mentioned and heard ; thus before confirmation ; bmt as all have 
not common perception, it is of importance that the subject 
should also be illustrated in the way of proof by such conside- 
rations as may tend to confirm it. These considerations are, 
that conjugial love grows cold as soon as it is divided, and this 
coldness causes it to perish; for the heat of unchaste love ex- 
tinguishes it, as two opposite heats cannot exist together, but 
one must needs reject the other and deprive it of its potency. 
Whenever therefore the heat of conjugial love begins to acquire 
a pleasant warmth, and from a sensation of its delights to bud 
and flourish, like an orchard and garden in spring; the latter 
from the vernal temperament of light and heat from the sun of 
the ^natural world, but the former Irom the vernal temperament 
of light and heat from the sun of the spiritual world. 

148. There is implanted in every man (homo) from creation, 
and consequently from his birth, an internal and an external 
conjugial principle; the internal is spiritual, and the external 
natural : a man comes first into the latter, and as he becomes 
spiritual, he comes into th& former. If therefore he remains 
in^the external or natural conjugial principle, the internal or 
spiritual conjugial principle is veiled or covered, until he knows 
nothing respecting it ; yea, until he calls it an ideal shadow 
without a substance : but if a man becomes spiritual, he then 
begins to know something respecting it, and afterwards to per- 

xujO 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 148 150 

ceive something of its quality, and successively to be made 
sensible of its pleasantness, agreeableness, and delights ; and 
in proportion as this is the case, the veil or covering between 
the external and internal, spoken of above, begins to be at- 
tenuated, and afterwards as it were to melt, and lastly to be 
dissolved and dissipated. When this effect takes place, the ex- 
ternal conjugial principle remains indeed ; but it is continually 
purged and purified from its dregs by the internal ; and this 
until the external becomes as it were the face of the internal, 
and derives its delight from the blessedness which is in the 
internal, and at the same time its life, and the delights of its 
potency. Such is the renunciation of whoredoms, by which 
the chastity of marriage exists. It may be imagined, that 
the external conjugial principle, which remains after the in- 
ternal has separated itself from it, or it from itself, resembles 
the external principle not separated : but I have heard from 
the angels that they are altogetherualike ; for that the external 
principle in conjunction with the internal, which they called the 
external of the internal, was void of all lasciviousness, because 
the internal cannot be lascivious, but only be delighted chastely ; 
and that it imparts the same disposition to its external, wherein 
it is made sensible of its own delights: the case is altogether 
otherwise with the external separated from the internal ; this 
they said, was lascivious in the whole and in every part 
They compared the external conjugial principle derived from 
the internal to excellent fruit, whose pleasant taste and flavor 
insinuate themselves into its outward rind, and form this into 
correspondence with themselves ; they compared it also to a 
granary, whose store is never diminished, but is continually re- 
cruited according to its consumption ; whereas they compared 
the external principle, separate from the internal, to wheat in a 
winnowing machine, when it is put in motion about its axis; in 
which case the chaff only remains, which is dispersed by the 
wind; so it is with the conjugial principle, unless the adulterous 
principle be renounced. 

149. The reason why the chastity of marriage does not exist 
by the renunciation of whoredoms, unless it be made from a 
principle of religion, is, because a man (homo} without religion' 
is not spiritual, but remains natural ; and. if the natural man 
renounces whoredoms, still his spirit does not renounce them ; 
and thus, although it seems to himself that he is chaste by such 
renunciation, yet nevertheless unchastity lies inwardly concealed 
like corrupt matter in a wound only outwardly healed. That 
conjugial love is according to the state of the church with man, 
may be seen above n* 130. More on this subject may be seen 
in the exposition of article XI. 

150. VIII. CHASTITY CANNOT BE PBBDIOATED OF or- 

FAOT8, OB OF BOYS AND GIRLS, OB OF TODNG-* MEN ANO 

133 



150 125 OOSTJTOIAL LOVE 

GINS BKFORT5 THEY FEEL IN THEMSELVES THE LOVE OF THB 

SKX. This is because the chaste principle and the unchaste are 
predicated only of marriages, and of such things as relate to mar- 
riages, as may be seen above, n. 139 ; and ol those who know 
nothing of the things relating to marriage, chastity is not pre- 
dicable ; for it is as it were nothing relating to them; and no* 
thing cannot be an object either of affection or thought ; but after 
this nothing there arises something, when the first motion to- 
wards marriage is felt, which is the love of the sex. That virgins 
and young men, before they feel in themselves the love of the sex ; 
are commonly called chaste, is owing to ignorance of what chas- 
tity is. 

151. XL CHASTITY CANNOT BE PREDICATED OF EUNUCHS 
BO BORN, OR OF EUNUCHS so MADE* Eunuchs so born are those 
more especially with whom the ultimate of love is wanting from 
birth ; and ^ as in such case the first and middle principles are 
without a foundation on which to stand, they have therefore no 
existence; and if they exist, the persons in whom they exist 
have no concern to distinguish between the chaste principle and 
the unchaste, each being indifferent to them ; but of these 
persons there are several distinctions. The case is nearly the 
same with eunuchs so made as with some eunuchs so born ; but 
eunuchs so made, as they are both men and women, cannot 
possibly regard conjugial love any otherwise than as a phantasy, 
and the^ delights thereof as idle stories. If they have any incli- 
nation, it is rendered mute, which is neither chaste nor unchaste: 
and what is neither chaste nor unchaste, derives no quality from 
either the one or the other. 

^52. X. CHASTITY CANNOT BIS PREDICATED OF THOSE WHO 

DO NOT BBUMVM ADULTEIUB8 TO 3E KVIJLS IN REGARD TO RKLI- 
aiON; AND STILL LESS OF THOSE WHO DO Wf BBJUBVffl THEM 

ro BE HURTFUL TO SOCIETY. The reason why chastity cannot be 
predicated of such is, because they neither know what chastity la 
nor even that it exists; for chastity relates to marriage, as was 
shewn in the first article of this section. Those who do not 
believe adulteries be evil in regard to religion, regard even 
marriages as unchaste ; whereas religion with married pairs con* 
titntes their chastity; thus such persons have nothing chaste in 
them, and therefore it is in vain to talk to them of cliastity ; 
these are confirmed adulterers : but those who do not believe 
adulteries to be hurtful to society, know still less than the others, 
either what chastity is or eveix that it exists'; for they are adul- 
terers from a determined ,j)tirpow t if they aay ; that marriages are 
less unchaste than adulteries, they say so merely with the 'mouth, 
but not with the heart, because marriages with them are cold, 
and those who speak from such cold concerning chaste heat, 
eaimot have an idea of chaste heat in regard to comugial 1 tyveu 
The nature and quality of such persons, and of the ideits of tlieir 
thought, andUenceof the interior principles of 



ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 152154: 

will be seen in the second part of this work, ADULTEROUS LOVE 

AND ITS SINFUL PLEASURES. 

153. XL CHASTITY CANNOT BE PREDICATED OF THOSE WHO 

ABSTAIN FROM ADULTERIES ONLY FOE VABIOUS EXTERNAL KEA- 

SONS. Many believe that the mere abstaining from adulteries in 
the body Is chastity ; yet this is not chastity, unless at the same 
time there is an abstaining in spirit. The spirit of man (homo), 
by which is here meant his mind as to affections and thoughts, 
constitutes the chaste principle and the unchaste, for hence it 
flows^into the body, the body being in all cases such as the mind 
or spirit is. Hence it follows, that those who abstain from adul- 
teries in the body, without being influenced from the spirit are 
not chaste ; neither are those chaste who abstain from them in 
spirit as influenced from the body. There are many assignable 
causes which make a man desist from adulteries in the body, and 
also in the spirit as influenced from the body ; but still, he that 
does not desist from them in the body as influenced from the 
spirit, is unchaste ; for the Lord says, " That whosoever looketh 
upon another^ woman, so as to lust after her, hath already com- 
mitted adultery with her in his heart" Matt. v. 28. It is im- 
possible to enumerate all the causes of abstinence from adulteries 
in the body only, they being various according to states of mar- 
riage, and also according to states of the body; for there are 
some persons who abstain from them from fear of the civil law 
and its penalties ; some from fear of the loss of reputation and 
thereby of honor ; some from fear of diseases which may be 
thereby contracted ; some from fear of domestic quarrels on the 
part of the wife, whereby the quiet of their lives may be dis- 
turbed ; some from fear of revenge on the part of the husband or 
relations ; some from, fear of chastiseinent from the ^servants of 
the family ; some also abstain from motives of poverty, avarice, 
or imbecility, arising either from disease, from abuse, from age, 
or from impotence. Of these there are some also, who, because 
they cannot or dare not commit adultery in the body, condemn 
adulteries in the spirit ; and thus they speak morally against 
adulteries, ana in favor of marriages ; but such person, unless in 
spirit they call adulteries accursed, and this from a religious 
principle in the spirit, are still adulterers; for although they do 
not commit them in tne body, yet they do in the spirit; where- 
fore after death, when they become spirits, they speak openly in. 
favor of them. From these considerations it is manifest, that 
even a wicked person may shun adulteries as hurtful ; but that 
none but a Christian can shun them as sins* Hence then the 
truth of the proposition is evident, that chastity cannot be pre- 
dicated of those who abstain from adulteries merely for various 
external reasons. 

154. XIL CHASTITY OAHNOT BB PREDICATED OF THOSE WHO 

BBLIBVB KAABXA&EB TO BB -0NOHABTB. These, like the petSODI 

135 



155 coN,rtiGiAL LOTS 

spoken of just above, n, 152, do not know either what chastity 
is, or even that it exists ; and in this respect they are like those 
who make chastity to consist merely in celibacy, of whom wo 
shall speak presently. 

155. XIII. CHASTITY OAOTOT BE PREDICATED OF THOSE WHO 

HAVE RENOUNCED MAEKIAGE BY VOWS OF PERPETUAL CELIBACY", 
UNLESS THERE BE AND BEKAIN IN THEM THE LOVE OP A LIFE 

TRULY eoiuuGiAx,. The reason why chastity cannot be pre- 
dicated of these, is, because after a vow of perpetual celibacy, 
conjugal love is renounced; and yet it is of this love alone 
that chastity can be predicated : nevertheless there still remains 
an inclination to the sex implanted from creation, and conse- 
quently innate by birth; and when this inclination is restrained 
and subdued, it must needs pass away into heat, and in some 
cases into a violent burning, which, in rising from the body 
into the spirit, infests it, and with some persona defiles it; and 
there may be instances where the spirit thus defiled may defile 
also the principles of religion, casting them down from theii 
internal abode, where they are in holiness, into things external, 
where they become mere matters of talk and gesture ; therefore 
it was provided* by the Lord, that celibacy should have place 
only with those who are in external worship, as is the case with 
all who do not address themselves to the Lord, or read the 
"Word. With such, eternal life is not so much endangered by 
vows of celibacy attended with engagements to chastity, as it Is 
with those who are principled in internal worship: moreover, in 
many instances that state of life is not entered upon from any 
freedom of the will, many being engaged therein before they 
attain to freedom grounded in reason, and some in consequence 
of alluring worldly motives. Of those who adopt that state with 
a view to have their minds disengaged from the world, that 
they may be more at leisure to apply themselves to divine things, 
those only are chaste with whom the'love of a life truly con- 
jugial either preceded that state or followed it, and with whom 
it remains; for the love of a life truly conjugial is that alone 
of which chastity is predicated, Wherefore also, after death, 
all who have lived in monasteries are at length freed from their 
vows and set at liberty, that, according to the interior vows and 
desires of their love, they may be led to choose a lifo either con* 
jiigial or extra-conjugial : if in such case they enter into con 
jugial life, those Who have loved also the spiritual things of 
divine worship are |iven in marriage in heaven ; but those who 
enter into extra-coirjngial life are sent to their like, who dwell 
on the confines ot heaven. I have inquired of the angels, 
whether those who have devoted themselves to works of piety > 
and given themselves up entirely to divine worship, and who thus 
have withdrawn themselves from the snares of the world and the 
concupiscences of the flesh, and with this view have vowed per- 
136 



AND ITS OIUSTB DELIQHTS. 155151* 

petnal virginity, are received into heaven, and there admitted 
among the blessed to enjoy an especial portion of happiness 
according to their faith. To this the angels replied, that such 
are indeed received into heaven ; but when they are made 
sensible of the sphere of coiyugial love there, they become sad 
and fretful, and then, some of their own accord, some by asking 
leave, and some from being commanded, depart and are dis- 
missed, and when they are out of that heaven, a way is opened 
for them to their consociatos, who had been in a similar state of 
life in the world ; and then frqju being fretful they become 
cheerful, and rejoice together. ' ^ 

156. XIV, A STATE OF MARRIAGE IS TO BE PREFERRED TO A 

STATE OP CELIBACY. This is evident from what has been said 
above respecting marriage and celibacy. A state of marriage is 
to be preferred because it is a state ordained from creation ; 
because it originates in the marriage of good and truth ; because 
it corresponds with the marriage of the Lord and the church ; 
because the church and conjngial love are constant companions ; 
because its use is more excellent than all the other uses of the 
things of creation, for thence according to order is derived the 
increase of the human race, and also of the angelic heaven, 
which is formed from the human race: moreover, marriage con- 
stitutes the completeness of a man (homo) ; for by it he becomes 
a complete man, as will be shewn in the following chapter. All 
these things are wanting in celibacy. But if the proposition be 
taken for granted, that a state of celibacy is preferable to a state 
of marriage, and if this proposition be left to the mind's ex- 
amination, to be assented to and established by confirming 
proofs, then the conclusion must be, that marriages are not holy, 
neither can they be chaste ; yea, that chastity in the female sex 
belongs only to those, who abstain from marriage and vow per- 
petual virginity ; and moreover, that those who nave vowed per- 
petual celibacy are understood by the eunuchs who make them* 
#d es eunuchs for the Mnodom of heaven's safc^ Matt, xix. 12 ; 
not to mention other conclusions of a like nature ; which, being 
grounded in a proposition that is not true, are also not true. 
The eunuchs who make themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of 
heaven's sake, are spiritual eunuchs, who are such as in mar- 
ria ea abstain from the evils of whoredoms : that Italian euuucha 

are not meant, is evident, 

# # # * * 

15L* To the above I shall add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS. 



DfctlUy JL B0 LJUttU JUU Cll'B UVLUC AiyUl UU13 O^JUUVl VA wtDUimi, CU.IVI, 

are made glad by what you heard there ; and asl perceive that you 
are not a full inhabitant of this world, because you are at the 

137 



LOVE 

same time in the natural world, and therefore know nothing 
of our otympic gymnasia, where the ancient sophi meet together, 
and by the information they collect from every new comer, learn 
what changes and successions wisdom has undergone and is still 
undergoing in your world ; if you are willing I will conduct you 
to the place where several of those ancient sophi and their sons, 
that is, their disciples, dwell." So he led me to the confines 
between the north and east ; and while I was looking that way 
from a rising ground, lo ! I saw a city, and on one side of it two 
small hills ; that which was nearer to the city being lower than 
the other. " That city," said he, is called Athens, the lower 
hill Parnassus, and the higher Helicon. They are so called, 
because in the city and around it dwell the wise men who for- 
merly lived in Greece, as Pythagoras, Socrates, Aristippus, 
Xenophon, with their disciples and scholars." On my asking 
him concerning Plato and Aristotle, he said, " They and their 
followers dwell in another region, because they taught principles 
of rationality which relate to the understanding ; whereas the 
former taught morality which relates to the life." He further 
informed me, that it was customary at times to depute from the 
city of Athens some of the students to learn from the literati of 
the Christians, what sentiments they entertain at this day re- 
specting G-od, the creation of the universe, the immortality of the 
soul, the relative state of men and beasts, and other subjects of 
interior wisdom : and he added, that a herald had that "day an- 
nounced an assembly, which was a token that the emissaries had 
met with some strangers newly arrived from the earth, who had 
communicated some curious information. We then saw several 
persons going from the city and its suburbs, some having tLeir 
heads decked with wreaths of laurel, some holding palms in their 
hands, some with books under their arms, and some with pens 
under the hair of the left temple. We mixed with the company, 
and ascended the hill with them ; and lo ! on the top was an 
octagonal palace, which they called the Palladium, into which we 
entered ; within there were eight hexangular recesses, in each of 
which was a book-case and a table : at these recesses were seated 
the laureled sophi^ and in the Palladium itself there were seats 
cut out of the rock, ou which the rest were seated. A door on 
the left was then opened, through which the two strangers newty 
arrived from the earth were introduced ; and after tne compli- 
ments of salutation were paid, one of the laureled sophi asked 
them, "WHAT NEWS FI*OM THE EAETH?" They replied, "Thia 
is news, that in forests there have been found man like beasts, or 
beasts like men ; from their face and body thev were known to 
have been born men, and to have been lost or left in the forests 
when they were two or three years old ; they were not able to 
give utterance to any thought, iror could they learn to articulate 
the voice into any distinct expression ; neither did they know the 
133 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 151*, 152* 

food suitable for them as the beasts do, but put greedily into 
their mouths whatever they found in the forest, whether it was 
clean or unclean ; besides many other particulars' of a like nature : 
from which some of the learned among us have formed several 
conjectures and conclusions concerning the relative state of men 
and beasts." On hearing this account, some of the ancient sophi 
asked, " What were the conjectures and conclusions formed from 
the circumstances you have related?" The two strangers re- 
plied, " There were several : but they may all be comprised under 
the following: 1. That a man by nature, and also by birth, is 
more^stupid and consequently viler than any beast ; and that he 
remains so, unless he is instructed. 2. That he is capable of 
being instructed, because lie has learnt to frame articulate 
sounds, and thence to speak, and thereby has begun to express 
his ^ thoughts, and this successively more and more perfectly 
until he has-been able to express the laws of civil society; 
several of which are nevertheless impressed on beasts from their 
birth. ^ 3. That beasts have rationality like men, 4. Therefore, 
that if beasts could speak, they would reason on any subject as 
acutely as men ; a proof of which is, that they think from reason 
and prudence just as men do, 5. That the understanding is 
only a modification of light from the sun ; the heat co-operating 
by means of ether, so that it is only an activity of interior 
nature ; and that this activity may be so exalted as to appear like 
Avisdom. 6. That therefore it is ridiculous to believe that a man 
lives after death any more than a beast ; unless perchance, for 
some days after his decease, in consequence of an exhalation of 
the life of the body, he may appear as a mist iinder the form of 
a spectre, before he is dissipated into nature ; just as a shrub 
raised up from its ashes, appears in the likeness of its own form. 
7. Consequently that religion, which teaches a life after death, is 
a mere device, in order to keep the simple inwardly in bonds by 
its laws, as they are kept outwardly in bonds by the laws of the 
state." ^ To this they added, that " people of mere ingenuity 
reason in this manner, but not so the intelligent:" and they 
were asked, " How do the intelligent reason ?" They said they 
had not been informed ; but they supposed that they must rea 
son differently. 

152.* On hearing this relation, all those who were sitting a 
the tables exclaimed, " Alas ! what times are come on the earth ! 
What changes has wisdom undergone ? How is she transformed 
into a false and infatuated ingenuity ! The sun is set, and in his 
station beneath the earth is in direct opposition to his meridian 
altitude. From the case here adduced respecting such as have 
been left and found in forests, who cannot see that an unin- 
structod man is such as here represented ? For is not the nature 
of his life determined by the nature of the instruction he receives ? 
Is he not born in a state of greater ignorance than the beasts? 

189 



152*j 153* CON-JFGIAL LOVE 

Must he not learn to walk and to speak? Supposing he rievei 
learnt to walk, would he ever stand upright? And if he never 
learnt to speak, W3uld he ever be able to express his thoughts ? 
Is not every man such as instruction makes him, insane from 
false principles, or wise from truths? and is not he that is insane 
from false principles, entirely possessed with an imagination that 
he is wiser than he that is wise from truths ? Are there not 
instances of men who are so wild and foolish, that they are no 
more like men than those who have been found in forests? Is 
not this the case with such as have been deprived of memory ? 
From all these considerations we conclude, that a man without 
instruction is neither a man nor a beast ; but that he is a form, 
which is capable of receiving in itself that which constitutes a 
man ; and thus that he is not born a man, but that he is made 
a man ; and that a man is born such a form as to be an organ 
receptive of life from God, to the end that he may be a subject 
into which God may introduce all good, and, by union with liim- 
self, may make him eternally blessed. We have perceived from 
your conversation, that wisdom at this day is so far extinguished 
or infatuated, that nothing at all is known concerning the relative 
state of the life of men and of beasts ; and hence it is that the 
state of the life of man after death is not known : but those who 
are capable of knowing this, and yet are not willing, and in con- 
sequence deny it, as many Christians do, may fitly be compared 
to such as are found in forests: not that they are rendered so 
stupid from a want of instruction, but that they have rendered 
themselves so by the fallacies of the senses, which are the dark- 
ness of truths." 

153.* At that instant a certain person standing in the middle 
of the Palladium, and holding in his hand a palm, said, u Explain, 
I pray, this arcanum, How a man, created a form of God, could 
be changed into a form of the devil. I know that the angels of 
heaven are forms of God and that the angels of hell are forms of 
the devil, and that the two forms are opposite to each other, the 
latter being insanities, the former wisdoms. Toll me, therefore, 
how a man, created a form of God, could pass from day into such 
night, as to be capable of denying God and life eternal" To 
this the several teachers replied in order ; first the Pythagoreans, 
next the Socratics, and afterwards the rest ; but among them 
there was a certain Platonist, who spoke last ; and his opinion 
prevailed, which was to this effect; That the men of the satur- 
nine or golden age knew and acknowledged that they were forma 
receptive of life from God ; and that on tins account wisdom waa 
inscribed on their souls and hearts, and hence they saw truth 
from the light of truth, and by truths perceived good from the 
delight of the love thereof: but as mankind in the following ages 
receded from the acknowledgement that all the truth of wisdom 
<uid the consequent good of love belonging to them, continually 
140 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 153* 155* 

flowed in from God, they ceased to be habitations of God ; and 
then also discourse with God, and consociation with angels 
ceased ; for the interiors of their minds were bent from their 
direction, which had been elevated upwards to God from God, into 
a direction more and more oblique, outwardly into the world, 
and thereby to God from God through the world, and at length 
inverted into an opposite direction, which is downwards to self; 
and as God cannot be looked at by a man interiorly inverted, and 
thereby averted, men separated themselves from God, and were 
made forms of hell or devils. From these considerations it 
follows, that in the first ages they acknowledged in heart and 
soul, that all the good of love and the consequent true wisdom, 
were derived to them from God, and also that they were God's 
in them ; and thus that they were mere recipients of life from 
God, and hence were called images of God, sons of God, and 
born of God : but that in succeeding ages they did not acknow- 
ledge this in heart and soul, but by a certain persuasive faith, 
next by an historical faith, and lastly only with the mouth; and 
this last kind of acknowledgement is no acknowledgement at aU ; 
yea, it is in fact a denial at heart From these considerations it 
may be seen what is the quality of the wisdom which prevails at 
this day on the earth among Christians, while they do not know 
the distinction between a man and a beast, notwithstanding thexi 
being in possession of a written revelation, whereby they may be 
inspired by God ; and hence many believe, that in case a man 
lives after death, a beast must live also ; or because a beast is not 
to live after death, neither will a man. Is not our spiritual light, 
which enlightens the sight of the mind, become thick darkness 
with them f and is not their natural light, which only enlightens 
the bodily sight, become brightness to them? 

154* After this they all turned towards the two strangers, 
and, thanked them for their visit, and for the relation they had 
given, and entreated them to go and communicate to their breth- 
ren what they had heard. The strangers replied that they would 
endeavor to confirm their brethren in this truth, that so far as 
they ascribe all the good of charity and the truth of faith to the 
Lord, and not to themselves, so far they are men, and so far they 
become angels of heaven, 

155.** THE SECOND MEMORABLE RELATION. One morning I 
was awoke by some delightful singing which I heard at a height 
above me, and in consequence, during the first watch, which is 
internal, pacific, and sweet, more than the succeeding part of the 
day, I was in a capacity of being kept for some time m the spirit 
as it were out of the body, and of attending carefully to the 
affection which was sung. The singing of heaven is an affection 
of the mind, sent forth through the mouth as a tune : for the 
tone of the voice in speaking, separate from the discourse of the 
speaking, and grounded in the aftection of lov.e,'is what gives life 

141 



155* COKJITGIAL LOVF 

to the speech. In that state I perceived that it was the affection 
of the delights of conjngial love, which was made musical by 
wives in heaven : that this was the case, I observed from the 
sound of the song, in which those delights were varied in a 
wonderful manner. After this I arose, and looked into the 
spiritual world; and lol in the east, beneath the sun, there 
appeared as it were a GOLDEN SHOWEK. It was the morning clew 
descending in great abundance, which, catching the sun's rays 
exhibited to my eyes the appearance of a golden shower, "in 
consequence of this I became fully awake, and went forth in 
the spirit, and asked an angel who then happened to meet me, 
whether he saw a golden shower descending from the sun ? He 
replied, that he saw one whenever he was meditating on conjngial 
love; and at the same time turning his eyes towards the sun, he 
added, "That shower falls over a nail, in which are three hus- 
bands with their wives, who dwell in the midst of an eastern 
paradise. Such a shower is seen falling from the sun over that 
nail, because with those husbands and wives there resides wisdom 
respecting conjugial love and its delights; with the husbands 
respecting conjugial love, and with the wives respecting its 
delights. 3^u.t,I jjerceive thatyon are engaged in meditatiugjxii 
thedelights j>f coij^u^aTloyT: "T wnTBiefeSre concTucFy oulfoere, 
SnTln^duce > you to them," He led me through paradisiacal 
scenery to houses- built of olive wood, having two cedar-columns 
before the gate, and introduced me to the husbands, and asked 
their permission for me to converse with them in the presence of 
the wives. They consented, and called their wives. These looked 
into my eyes most shrewdly; upon which I asked them, " Why 
do you do so?" They^ said, "We can thereby discover exqui- 
sitely what is your inclination and consequent affection, and your 
thought grounded in affection, respecting the love of the sox ; 
and we see that you are meditating intensely, but still chastely, 
concerning it." And they added, "What do you wish us to tell 
you on the subject?" I replied, "Tell me, I pray, something 
respecting the delights of conjugial love." The husbands as- 
sented, saying, " If you are so disposed, give them some infor- 
mation in regard to those delights ; their ears are chaste*" They 
asked me, " Who taught you to question us respecting the 
delights of that love ? Why did you not question our husbands?" 
I replied, cc This angel, who accompanies me, informed me, that 
wives are the recipients and sensories of those delighte, because 
they are born loves ; and all delights are of love." To this 
they replied with a smile, " Be prudent, and declare nothing of 
this sort except ambiguously ; because it is a wisdom deeply 
seated in the hearts of our sex, and is not discovered to any hus- 
band, unless he be principled in love truly conjngial, There are 
several reasons for this, which we keep entirely to ourselves. w 
Then the husbands said, " Our wives know all the states of om 
142 



' AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 155* 

minds, none of which are hid from them : they see, perceive, and 
are sensible of whatever proceeds from our will. "We, on the 
other hand, know nothing of what passes with our wives. This 
faculty is given to wives, because they are most tender loves, and 
as it were burning zeals for the preservation of friendship and 
conjugial confidence, and thereby of all the happiness of life, 
which they carefully attend to, both in regard to their husbands 
and themselves, by virtue of a wisdom implanted in their love, 
which is so full of prudence, that they are unwilling to say, and 
consequently cannot say, that they love, but that they are loved," 
I asked the wives, "Why are you unwilling, and consequently 
cannot say so?" They replied, "If the least hint of the kind 
were to escape from the mouth of a wife, the husband would be 
seized with coolness, which would entirely separate him from all 
communication with his wife, so that he could not even bear to 
look upon her ; but this is the case only with those husbands 
who do not hold marriages to be holy, and therefore do not love 
their wives fromspirituallove ; it is otherwise with those who do. 
In the minds of the latter this love is spiritual, and by derivation 
thence in. the body is natural. "We in this hall are principled in 
the latter love by derivation from the former ; therefore we trust 
our husbands with our secrets respecting our delights of conjugial 
love. ?? Then I courteously asked them to disclose to me some 
of those secrets : they then looked towards a window on the 
southern quarter, ana lo ! there appeared a white dove, whose 
wings shone as if they were of silver, and its head was crested 
with a crown as of gold : it stood upon a bough, from which 
there went forth an olive ; and while it was in the attempt to 
spread out its wings, the wives said, " We will communicate 
something: the appearing of that dove is a token that we may. 
"Every man (wr)/ 7 they continued, "has five senses, seeing, 
hearing, smelling, taste, and touch; but we have likewise a 
sixth, which is the sense of all the delights of the conjugial love 
of the husband ; and this sense we have in the palm? of our 
hands, while we touch the breasts, arms, hands, or cheeks, of our 
husbands, especially their breasts; and also while we are touched 
by them. All the gladness and pleasantness of the thoughts of 
tlieir minds (mentium\ all the joys and delights of their minds 
(animorum), and all tlie festive and cheerful principles of their 
bosoms, pass from them to us, and become perceptible, sensible, 
and tangible; we discern them as exquisitely and distinctly as 
the ear does the tune of a song, and the tongue the taste of 
dainties ; in a word, the spiritual delights of our husbands put 
on with us a kind of natural embodiment ; therefore they call us 
the sensory organs of chaste conjugial love, and thence its de- 
eights. But this sixth sense of ours exists, subsists, persists, and 
is exalted in the degree in which our husbands love us from wis- 
dom and judgement, and in which we in our turn love them from 

143 



155,* 156* CONJUGIAL LOVE 

the same principles in them. This sense in our sex is called in 
the heavens the sport of wisdom with its love, and of love with 
its wisdom." From this information I became desirous of asking 
further questions concerning the variety of their delights. They 
aid, "It is infinite; but we are unwilling and therefore unable 
to say more ; for the dove at our window, with the olive branch 
under his feet, is flown away." I waited for its return, but in 
vain* In the meantime I asked the husbands, "Have you a 
like sense of conjngial love?" They replied, "We have a like 
sense in general, but not in particular. We enjoy a general 
blessedness, delight, and pleasantness, arising from the particu- 
lars of our wives; and this general principle, which we derive 
from them, is serenely peaceful." As they said this, lo! through 
the window there appeared a swan standing on a branch of a fig- 
tree, which spread out his wings and flew away. On seeing this, 
the husbands said, " This is a sign for us to be silent respecting 
conjugial love : come again some other time, and perhaps you 
may hear more." They then withdrew, and we tooK our leave. 



ON THE CONJUNCTION OF SOULS AND MINDS BT MARRIAGE, 
WHICH IS MEANT BY THE LORD'S WORDS, THEY ARE NO 
LONGER TWO, BUT ONE FLESH. 

156.* THAT at creation there was implanted in the man and 
the woman an inclination and also a faculty of conjunction as 
into a one, and that this inclination and this faculty are still in 
man and woman, is evident from the book of creation, and at 
the same time from the Lord's words. In the book of creation, 
called GENESIS, it is written, "Jehovah God builded the rib, 
which ie had taken from the man, into a woman, and brought 
her to the man* Ana the man said, This now is bone of my bones, 
and fle&h of my flash. She shall be called Woman, because she 
was taken out of man ; for this cause shall a man leave his father 
and his mot her , and shall cleave to his wife : and they shall be one 
flesh," chap. ii. 22 24. The Lord also says in Matthew, 
u Have ye not read, that he that made them from the beginning, 
made them a male and a female, and said, For this cause shall a 
man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and 
they TWO SHALL BECOME OHE FLESH ? WHEREFORE THFJY ABE 
so LONGER TWO, BUT ONE FLESH," chap. xix. 4 6. From this 
it is evident, that the woman was created out of the man (vir), 
and that each has an inclination and faculty to reunite them- 
selves into a one. That such reunion means into one man 
144 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 

(homo), is also evident from the book of creation, where both 
together are called man (homo) ; for It is written, " In the day 
that God created man (homo), he created them a male and a 
female, and called their name Man (homo)," chap. v. 2. It is 
there written, he called their name Adam; but Adam and man 
are one expression in the Hebrew tongue : moreover, both toge- 
ther are called man in the same book, chap. i. 27 ; chap. iii. 22 
24. One flesh also signifies one man ; as is evident from the 
passages in the Word where mention is made of all flesh, which 
signifies every man, as Gen. chap. vi. 12, 13, 17, 19 ; Isaiah xl. 5, G ; 
chap. xlix. 26; chap. Ixvi. 16, 23, 24; Jer, xxv. 31; chap. xxxiL 
!27; chap. xlv. 5 ; Ezek. xx. -is ; chap. xxi. 4, 5 ; and other pas- 
sages. But what is meant by the man's rib, which was buikled 
into a woman ; what by the flesh, which was closed up in the 
place thereof, and thus what by bone of my bones, and flesh of my 
fleah ; and what by a father and a mother, whom a man (vir) 
shall leave after marriage ; and what by cleaving to a wife, has 
been shewn in the AKOAHA OCELESTIA ; in which work the two 
books, Genesis and Exodus, are explained as to the spiritual 
sense. It is there proved that a rib does not mean a rib, 
nor flesh, flesh, nor a bone, a bone, nor cleaving to, cleaving 
to; but that they signify spiritual things, which correspond 
thereto, and consequently are signified thereby. That spiritual 
things are understood, which from two make one man (homo), is 
evident from this consideration, that conjugial love conjoins 
them, and this love is spiritual. That the love of the man's wis- 
dom is transferred into the wife, has been occasionally observed 
above, and will be more fully proved in the following sections : 
at this time it is not allowable to digress from the subject pro- 
posed, which is concerning the conjunction of two married part- 
ners into one flesh by a union of souls and minds. This union 
we will elucidate by^ treating of it in the following order. I. 
from creation there is implanted in each sex a faculty and incli- 
nation, whereby they are able and willing to be conjoined together 
as it were into a one* IL Conjugial love conjoins two souls^ and 
thence two minds into a one. 111. The will of the wife conjoint 
itself with the understanding of the man, and thence the under* 
standing of the man conjoins itself with the will of the wife. IV. 
The inclination to unite the man to herself is constant and per- 
petual with the wife / but is inconstant and alternate with the 
man. V. Conjunction is inspired into the man from the wife 
according to her love, and is received "by the man according to hii 
wisdom,. VI. This conjunction is effected successively from th* 
forvt days of marriage; and with those who aregrineifled in Iov6 
truly conjugialj is Affected more and more thoroughly^ to eternity* 
YIL The conjunction of the wife with the rational wisdom oftrw 
husband is greeted from within^ but with this moral wisdomjrom 
without. VIIL For the sake of this conjunction, as an end^ t/w 

10 145 



156*, 157 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

wife has a percept^cn of the affections of the husband ', and also 
tke utmost prudence in moderating them. IX. Wives conceal 
this perception with themselves, and hide it from their husbands, 
for reasons of necessity, in order that conjugial love, friendship^ 
and confidence, and thereby the "blessedness of dwelhng together, 
and the happiness of life may be secured. X. This perception i$ 
the wisdom of the wife, and is not communicable to the man / 
neither is the rational wisdom of the man communicable to the 
wife. XL The wife, from a principle of love, is continually think- 
ing about the man's inclination to her, with the purpose of joining 



him to herself; it is otherwise with the man. XII. The wife 
conjoins herself to the man, by applications to the desires of his 
will. XIII. The wife is conjoined to her husband by the sphere 
of her life flowing from the love of him, XIV. The wife ^s con- 
joined to the husband by^ the appropriation of the powers of his 
virtue ; which however is effected according to the^r mutual sp'i* 
ritual love. XV. Thus the wife receives in herself the image of 
her husband, and thence perceives, sees, and is sensible of, his 
affections. XVI. There are duties proper to the husbana, and 
others pi*oper to the wife / and the wife cannot enter into the 
duties proper to the husband, nor the husband into the duties pro- 
per to the wife, so as to perform them aright. XVII. 2/iese 
duties, also, according to mutual aid, conjoin the two into a one, 
and at the same time constitute one house. XVIII. Married 
partners, according to these conjunctions, become one man (homo) 
more and more. JGX. Those who are principled in love truly 
conjugial, are sensible of their being a united man, and as it were 
one jiesfi. XX, Love truly conjugal, considered in itself ] is a 
union of souls, a conjunction of minds, and an endeavor towards 
conjunction in the bosoms and thence in the body. XXL The 
states of this love are innocence, peace, tranquillity, inmost friend-* 
8 hip, full confidence, and a mutual desire of mind and heart to do 
wery good to each other / and the states derived from these are 
blessedness, satisfaction, delight, and pleasure ; and from the 
eternal enjoyment of these is derived heavenly felicity. XXIL 
These things can only exist in the marriage of one man with one 
wife. We proceed now to the explanation of those articles* 
157. I. FROM CREATION THERE is JHPLANTBD IN EACH SEX 

A FACULTY AND INCLINATION, WHEREBY THEY ARE ABLE ANT) 
WILLING- TO BE JOINED TOGETHER, AS IT WERE INTO A ONE. 

That the woman was taken out of the man, was shown jus' 
above from the book of creation ; hence it follows, that there is 
in each sex a faculty and inclination to join themselves together 
into a one ; for that which ia taken out of anything, derives 
and retains its constituent principle, from the principle proper to 
the thing whence it was taken ; and as this derived principle is of 
a similar nature with that from which it was derived, it seek* 
after a reunion : and when it is reunited, it is as in itself when it 
1*6 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 167 

is in that from whence it came, and vice ^ersa. That there is a 
faculty of conjunction of the one sex with the other, or that they 
are capable of being united, is universally allowed ; and also that 
there is an inclination to join themselves the one with the other; 
for experience supplies sufficient confirmation in both cases. 

158. II. CONJUGIAL LOVJE CONJOINS TWO SOULS, AKD THENOE 

TWO MINDS, INTO A ONE, Every man consists of a soul, a mind, 
and a body. The soul is his inmost, the mind his middle, and 
the body his ultimate constituent. As the soul is a man's inmost 
principle, it is, from its origin, celestial ; as the mind is his mid- 
dle principle, it is, from its origin, spiritual ; and as the body is 
his ultimate principle, it is, from its origin, natural. Those 
things, which, from their origin, are celestial and spiritual, are 
not in space, but in the appearance of space. This also is well 
known in the word; therefore it is said, that neither extension 
nor place can be predicated of spiritual things. Since therefore 
spaces are appearances, distances also and presences are appear- 
ances. That the appearances of distances and presences in the 
spiritual world are according to proximities, relationships, and 
affinities of love, has been frequently pointed out and confirmed 
iu small treatises respecting that world. These observations are 
made, in order that it may be known that the souls and minds 
of men are not in space like their bodies ; because the former, as 
was said above, from their origin, are celestial and spiritual ; and 
as they are not in space, they may be joined together as into a 
one, although their bodies at the same time are not so joined. 
This is the case especially with married partners, who love each 
other intimately: but as the woman is from the man, and this 
conjunction is a species of reunion, it may be seen from reason, 
that it is not a conjunction into a one, bat an adjunction, close 
and near according to the love, and approaching to contact with 
those who are principled in love truly conjugial. This adjunc- 
tion may be called spiritual dwelling together ; which takes place 
with married partners who love each other tenderly, however 
distant their bodies may be from each other. Many experimental 
proofs exist, even in the natural world, in confirmation of these 
observations. Hence it is evident, that conjugial love conjoins 
two souls and minds into a one. 

159. III. THE WILL OF THE WIFB CONJOINS ITSELF WITH 

TJIB XJNDBESTANDma OF THE MAN, AND THENCE THE TODKB- 
fcTANDIHG OF THE MAK "WITH THE WILL OF THE WIFE. The 

reason of this is, because the male is born to become under 
standing, and the female to become will, loving the understand 
ing of the male; from which consideration it follows, tha 
conjugial conjunction is that of the will of the wife with th& 
understanding of the man, and the reciprocal conjunction of the 
understanding of the man with the will of the wife. Every one 
sees that the conjunction of the understanding and the will ia 

147 



159 161 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

of the most intimate kind ; and that it is such, that the one 
faculty can enter into the other, and he delighted from and 
iu the conjunction. 

160. IV. THE INCLINATION TO UNITE THE MAN TO HER- 
SELF IS CONSTANT AND PERPETUAL WITH THE WIFE, BUT IN- 
CONSTANT AND ALTERNATE WITH THE MAN. The reilSOll of tln3 

is, because love cannot do otherwise than love and unite itself, 
in order that it may be loved in return, this being its very essence 
and life ; and women are born loves ; whereas men, with whom 
they unite themselves in order that they may be loved in return, 
are receptions. Moreover love is continually efficient ; being like 
heat, flame, and fire, which perish if their efficiency is checked. 
Hence the inclination to unite the man to herself is constant and 
perpetual with the wife : but a similar inclination does not ope- 
rate with the man towards the wife, because the man is not love, 
but only a recipient of love ; and as a state of reception is absent 
or present according to intruding cares, and to the varying 
presence or absence of heat in the mind, as derived from various 
causes, and also according to the increase and decrease of the 
bodily powers, which do not return regularly and at stated 
periods, it follows, that the inclination to conjunction is incon- 
stant and alternate with men. 

161. V. CONJUNCTION is INSPIEED INTO THE MAN FROM 

T1IE WIFE ACCORDING- TO HEK LOVE, AND IS RECEIVED BY THE 

MAN ACCORDING TO HIS WISDOM. That love and consequent 
conjunction is inspired into the man by the wife, is at this day 
concealed from the men ; yea, it is universally denied by them ; 
because wives insinuate that the men alone love, and that they 
themselves receive; or that the men are loves, and themselves 
obediences: they rejoice also in heart when the men believe it 
to be so. There are several reasons why they endeavour to per- 
suade the men of this, which are all grounded iu their prudence 
and circumspection ; respecting which, something shall be said in 
a future part of this work, particularly in the chapter ON THK 

CAUSES OF COLDNESS, SEPARATIONS, AHD DIVOEOE8 BETWEEH 

MAEKIED PAKTNKRS, The reason why men receive from their 
wives the inspiration or insinuation of love, is, because nothing 
of conjugial love, or even of the love of the sex, is with the men, 
but only with wives and females. That this is the case, has been 
clearly shewn me in the spiritual world. I was once engaged in 
conversation there on this subject ; and the men, in consequence 
of a persuasion infused from their wives, insisted that they loved 
and not the wives; but that the wives received love from them* 
In order to settle the dispute respecting this arcanum, all the 
females, married and unmarried, were withdrawn from the men, 
and at the same time the sphere of the love of the sex was 
removed with them. On the removal of this sphere, the men 
were reduced to a very unusual state, such as they had never 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 161163 

before perceived, at which they greatly complained. Then, while 
they were in this state, the females were brought to them, and 
the wives to the husbands; and both the wives and the other 
females addressed them in the tenderest and most engaging 
manner ; but they were cold to their tenderness, and turned 
away, and said one to another, " What is all this ? what is a 
female ?" And when some of the women said that they were 
their wives, they replied, "What is a wife? we do not know 
you." But when the wives began to be grieved at this absolutely 
cold indifference of the men, and some of them to shed tears, the 
sphere of the love of the female sex, arid the conjugial sphere, 
which had for a time been withdrawn from the men, was re- 
stored ; and then the men instantly returned into their former 
state, the lovers of marriage into their state, and the lovers of 
the sex into theirs. Thus the men were convinced, that nothing 
of conjugial love, or even of the love of the sex, resides with 
them, but only with the wives and females. Nevertheless, the 
wives afterwards from their prudence induced the men to believe, 
that love resides with the men, and that some small spark of it 
may pass from them into the wives. This experimental evidence 
is here adduced, in order that it may be known, that wives are 
loves and men recipients. That men are recipients according to 
their wisdom, especially according to this wisdom grounded in 
religion, that the wife only is to be loved, is evident from this 
consideration, that so long as the wife only is loved, the love is 
concentrated ; and because it is also ennobled, it remains in its 
strength, and is fixed and permanent ; and that in any other case 
it would be as when wheat from the granary is cast to the dogs, 
whereby there is scarcity at home. 

162. VI. THIS CONJUNCTION IB EFFECTED SUCCESSIVELY 

FKOM THE FIBST PAYS OF MABBIAGE ; AND WITH THOSE WHO AKB 
PRINCIPLED IN LOVE TEULY CONJUGIAL, IT IS EFFECTED MOEE 

AND MOBB THOROUGHLY TO ETERNITY. The first heat of mar- 
riage does not conjoin; for it partakes of the love of the sex, 
which is the love of the body and thence of the spirit ; and what 
is in the spirit, as derived from the body, does not long continue ; 
but the love which is in the body, and is derived from the spirit, 
does continue. The love of the spirit, and of the body from the 
spirit, is insinuated into the souls and minds of married partners, 
together with friendship and confidence. "When these two 
[friendship and confidence] conjoin themselves with the first love 
of marriage, there is effected conjugial love, which opens the 
bosoms, and inspires the sweets of that love ; and this more and 
more thoroughly, in proportion as those two principles adjoin 
themselves to the primitive bve, and that love enters into them, 
and vice versa* 
163. V1L THE CONJUNCTION OF THE WIFE WITH THE BA 

TIONAL WISDOM OF THE HUSBAND IS EFFECTED FEOM WITHIN, 

349 



163 165 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

BUT WITH IH8 MORAL WISDOM FKOM WITHOUT!. Tliat Wisdom 

with men is two-fold, rational and moral, and that their rational 
wisdom is of the understanding alone, and their moral wisdom is 
of the understanding arid the life together, may be concluded and 
seen from mere intuition and examination. But in order that it 
may be known what we mean by the rational wisdom of men, and 
what by their moral wisdom, we will enumerate some of the 
specific distinctions. The principles constituent of their rational 
wisdom are called by various names ; in general they are called 
knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom ; but in particular they are 
called rationality, judgement, capacity, erudition, and sagacity ; 
but as every one has knowledge peculiar to his office, therefore 
they are multifarious ; for the clergy, magistrates, public officers, 
nidges, physicians and chemists, soldiers and sailors, artificers and 
laborers, husbandmen, &c., have each their peculiar knowledge. 
To rational wisdom also appertain all the knowledge into which 
young men are initiated in the schools, and by wnich they are 
afterwards initiated into intelligence, which also are called by 
various names, as philosophy, physics, geometry, mechanics, 
chemistry, astronomy, jurisprudence, politics, ethics, history, and 
several others, by which, as by doors, an entrance is made into 
things rational, which are the ground of rational wisdom. 

164. But the constituents of moral wisdom with men are all 
the moral virtues, which have respect to life, and enter into it, 
and also all the spiritual virtues, which flow from love to God 
and love towards our neighbour, and centre in those loves. The 
virtues which appertain to the moral wisdom of men are also of 
various kinds, and are called temperance, sobriety, probity, bene- 
volence, friendship, modesty, sincerity, courtesy, civility, also 
carefulness, industry, quickness of wit, alacrity, munificence, 
liberality, generosity, activity, intrepidity, prudence and many 
others. Spiritual virtues with men are the love of religion, 
charity, truth, conscience, innocence, and many more. The 
latter virtues and also the former, may in general be referred to 
love and zeal for religmn, for the public good, for a man's 
country, for his fellow-citizens, for his parents, for his married 
partner, and for Jhis children. In all these, justice and judge- 
ment have dominion; justice having relation to moral, and 

udgement to rational wisdom, 

165. The reason why the conjunction of the wife with the 
man's rational wisdom is from within, is, because this wisdom 
belongs to the man's understanding, and ascends into the light 
in which women are not t and this is the reason why women do 
not speak from that wisdom ; but, when the conversation of the 
men turns on subjects proper thereto, they remain silent and 
listen. That nevertheless such subjects have place with the wives 
from within, is evident from their listening thereto, and from 
their inwardly recollecting what had been said, and favoring 

150 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 165- - 167 

those things which they had heard from their husbands. But 
the reason why the conjunction of the wife with the moral wis- 
dom of the man is from without, is, because the virtues of that 
wisdom for the most part are akin to similar virtaos with the 
women, and partake of the man's intellectual will, with which 
the will of the wife unites and constitutes a marriage ; &ndsinco 
the wife knows those virtues appertaining to the man more than 
the man himself does, it is said that the conjunction of the wife 
with those virtues is from without. 

166. VIII. FOE THE SAKE OF THIS CONJUNCTION AS AN 
END, THE WIFE HAS A PERCEPTION OF THE AFFECTIONS OF THL 
HUSBAND, AND ALSO THE UTMOST PRUDENCE IN MODERATING 

THEM. That wives know the affections of their husbands, and 
prudently moderate them, is among the arcana of con] ugial love 
which lie concealed with wives. They know those affections by 
three senses, the sight, the hearing, and the touch, and moderate 
them while their husbands are not at all aware of it Now an 
the reasons of this are among the arcana of wives, it does not 
become me to disclose them circumstantially ; bnt as it is be- 
coming for the wives themselves to do so, therefore four MEMO- 
RABLE RELATIONS are added to this chapter, in which those rea- 
sons are disclosed by the wives: two of the RELATIONS are taken 
from the three wives that dwelt in the hall, over which was seen 
falling as it were a golden shower ; and two from the seven wives 
that were sitting in the garden of roses, A perusal of these 
RELATIONS will unfold this arcanum. 

167. IX. WlVES CONCEAL THIS PERCEPTION WITH THEM- 
SELVES AND HIDE IT FROM THEIR HUSBANDS, FOR REASONS OF 
NECESSITY, IN ORDER THAT CONJUGIAL LOVE, FRIENDSHIP, AND 
CONFIDENCE, AND THEREBY THE BLESSEDNESS OF DWELLING TO- 
GETHER AND THE HAPPINESS OF LIFE MAY BE SECURED. The 

concealing and hiding of the perception of the affections of the 
husband by the wives, are said to be of necessity ; because if 
they should reveal them, they would cause a complete alienation 
of their husbands, both in mind and body, Tlxe reason of this 
is, because there resides deep in the minds of many men a con- 
jugial coldness, originating in several causes, which will be enu- 
merated in the chapter ON THE CAUSES OF COLDNESSES, SEPARA- 
TION, AND DIVORCES BETWEEN MARRIED PARTNERS. This Cohl- 

ness, in case the wives should discover the affections and 
inclinations of their husbands, would burst forth from its hiding 
places, and communicate its cold, first to the interiors of the 
mind, afterwards to the breast, and thence to the ultimates of 
love which are appropriated to generation ; and these being 
affected with cold, com ugial love would be banished to such a 
degree, that there wotild not remain any hope of friendship, of 
confidence, of the blessedness of dwelling together, and thence 
of the happiness of life ; when nevertheless wires are continually 

151 



167171 CONJUG-IAL LOVE 

feeding on tin's hope. To make this open declaration, that they 
know their husbands' affections and inclinations of love, carries 
with it a declaration and publication of their own love: and it is 
well known, that so far as wives make such a declaration, so far 
the men grow cold and desire a separation. From these consi- 
derations the truth of this proposition is manifest, that the rea- 
sons why wives conceal their perception with themselves, and 
hide it from their husbands, are reasons of necessity. 

168. X. THIS PERCEPTION IS THE WISDOM OF THE WIFE, 
JIND IS NOT COMMUNICABLE TO THE MAN J NEITHER IS THE RA- 
TIONAL WISDOM OF THE MAN COMMUNICABLE TO THE WIFE. This 

follows from the distinction subsisting between the male prin- 
ciple and the female. The male principle consists in perceiving 
from the understanding, and the female in perceiving from love: 
and the understanding perceives also those things which are 
above the body and are out of the world; for the rational and 
spiritual sight reaches to such objects ; whereas love reaches no 
further than to what it feels ; when it reaches further, it is in 
consequence of conjunction with the understanding of the man 
established from creation : for the understanding has relation to 
light, and love to heat; and those things which have relation to 
light., are seen, and those which have relation to heat, are felt 
From these considerations it is evident, that from the universal 
distinction subsisting bet ween the male principle and the female, 
the wisdom of the wife is not communicable to the man, neither 
is the wisdom of the man communicable to the wife : nor, fur- 
ther, is the moral wisdom of the man communicable to women, 
so far as itpartakes of his rational wisdom. 

169. XL THE WIFE FROM A PRINCIPLE OF LOVE IN CONTIN- 
UALLY THINKING- ABOUT THE MAN J S INCLINATION TO I1KE, WITH 
THE PDBPOSE OF JOINING HIM TO HERSELF.* IT IS OTHERWISE 

WITH THE MAN. This agrees with what was explained above ; 
namely, that the inclination to unite the man to herself is con- 
stant and perpetual with the wife, but inconstant and alternate 
with the man ; see n. 160 : hence it follows, that the wife's 
thoughts are continually employed about her husband's inclina- 
tion to her, with the purpose of joining him to herself. Her 
thoughts concerning ner husband are interrupted indeed by 
domestic concerns ; but still they remain in the affection of her 
love ; and this affection does not separate itself from the thoughts 
with women, as it does with men : these things, however, I 
relate from hearsay ; see the two MEMORABLE RELATIONS from 
the seven wives sitting in the rose-garden, which are annexed to 
Borne of the following chapters. 

170. XII. THE WIFE CONJOINS HERSELF TO THE MAN BY 
APPLICATIONS TO THE DESIRES OF HIS WILL. This being gene- 
rally known and admitted, it is needless to explain it 

171. XIII. THE WIFE is CONJOINED TO HER HUSBAND BY 
152 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 171 

THE SPHERE OF HEK LIFE FLOWING FEOM THE LOVE OF HTM, 

There flows, yea there overflows, from every man (homo) a spi 
ritual sphere, derived from the affections of his love, which en- 
compasses him, and infuses itself into the natural sphere derived 
from the body, so that the two spheres are conjoined. That 
a natural sphere is continually flowing, not only from men, but 
a so from beasts, yea from trees, fruits, flowers, and also from 
metals, is generally known. The case is the same in the spiritual 
world ; but the spheres flowing from subjects in that world are 
spiritual, and those which emanate from spirits and angels are 
altogether spiritual ; because there appertain thereto affections 
of love, and thence interior perceptions and thoughts. This is 
the origin of all sympathy and antipathy, and likewise of all 
conjunction and disjunction, and, according thereto, of presence 
and absence in the spiritual world : for what is of a similar 
nature or concordant causes conjunction and presence, and what 
is of a dissimilar nature and discordant causes disjunction and 
absence ; therefore those spheres cause distances in that world. 
What effects those spiritual spheres produce in the natural 
world, is also known to some. The inclinations of married 
partners towards each other are from no other origin. They are 
united by unanimous and concordant spheres, and disunited by 
adverse and discordant spheres ; for concordant spheres are 
delightful and grateful, whereas discordant spheres are unde- 
lighfcful and ungrateful I have been informed by the angels, 
who are in a clear perception of those spheres, that every part of 
a man, both interior and exterior, renews itself; which is effected 
by solutions and reparations; and that hence arises the sphere 
"which continually issues forth. I have also been informed that 
thfs sphere encompasses a man on the back and on the breast, 
lightly on the back, but more densely on the breast, and that 
the sphere issuing from the breast conjoins itself with the respi- 
ration ; and that this is the reason why two married partners, 
who are of different minds and discordant affections, lie in bed 
back to back, and, m the other hand, why those who agree in 
minds and affections, mutually turn towards each other. 1 have 
been further informed by the angels, that these spheres, because 
they flow from every part of a man {homo}, and are abundantly 
continued around him, conjoin and disjoin two married part- 
ners not only externally, but also internally ; and that hence 
come all the differences and varieties of conjugial love. Lastly, 
I have been informed, that the sphere of love, flowing from a 
wife who is tenderly loved, is perceived in heaven as sweetly 
fragrant, by far more pleasant than it is perceived in the world 
by a newly married man during the first days after marriage. 
From these considerations is manifested the truth of the asser- 
tion, that a wife is conjoined to a man by the sphere of her life 
flowing from the love of him* 

153 



172, 173 OONJUGIAL LOVE 

172. XIV, THE WIFE is CONJOINED TO THE HUSBAND ur 

THE APPROPRIATION OF THE POWERS OF HIS VIRTUE ; WHICH 
HOWEVER IS EFFECTED ACCORDING TO THEIR MUTUAL SPIRITUAL 

LOVE. That this is the case, I have also gathered from the 
mouth of angels. They have declared that the prolific principles 
imparted from the husbands are received universally by the wives 
and add themselves to their life; and that thus the wives lead n 
life unanimous, and successively more unanimous with their hus- 
bands ; and that hence is effectively produced a union of souls 
and a conjunction of minds. They declared the reason of this 
was, because in the prolific principle of the husband is his soul, 
and also his mind as to its interiors, which are conjoined to the 
soul. They added, that this was provided from creation, in order 
that the wisdom of the man, which constitutes his soul, may be 
appropriated to the wife, and that thus they may become, accord- 
ing to the Lord's words, one flesh : and further, that this was pro- 
vided, lest the husband (homovir) from some caprice should leave 
the wife after conception. But they added further, that applica- 
tions and appropriations of the life of the husband with the wife are 
effected according to conj ugial love, because love which is spiritual 
union, conjoins ; and that this also is provided for several reasons. 

173. XV. TlIUS THE WIFE RECEIVES IN HERSELF THE IMAGE 

OF HER HUSBAND, AND THENCE PERCEIVES, SEES, AND IS SENSIBLE 

OF, HIS AFFECTIONS. From the reasons above adduced it follows 
as an established fact, that wives receive in themselves those 
things which appertain to the wisdom of their husbands, thus 
which are proper to the souls and minds of their husbands, and 
thereby from virgins make themselves wives. The reasons from 
which this follows, are, 1. That the woman was created out of 
the man. 2. That hence she has an inclination to unite, and as 
it were to reunite herself with the man. 3. That by virtue of 
this union with her partner, and for the sake of it, the woman is 
born the love of the man, and becomes more and more the love 
of him by marriage ; because in this case the love is continually 
employing its thoughts to conjoin the man to itself. 4. That 
the woman is conjoined to her only one (unico suo) by applica- 
tion to the desires of his life. 5. That they are conjoined by 
the spheres which encompass them, and which unite themselves 
universally and particularly according to the quality of the con* 
jugial love with the wives, and at the same time according to the 
quality of the wisdom recipient thereof with the husbands. 6. 
juhatthey are also conjoined by appropriations of the powers of 
the husbands by the wives. 7. From which reasons it is evident, 
that there is continually somewhat of the husband being trans- 
ferred to the wife, and inscribed on her as hor own. From all 
these considerations it follows, that the image of the husband 
is formed in the wife ; by virtue of which image the wife per- 
ceives, sees, and is sensible of, the things which are in her hus 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 173175 

band, in herself, and thence as It were herself in him. She per- 
ceives from communication, she sees from aspect, and she is 
made sensible from the touch. That she is made sensible of the 
reception of her love by the husband from the touch in the palms 
of the hands, on the cheeks, the shoulders, the hands, and the 
breasts, I learnt from the three wives in the hall, and the seven 
wives in the rose garden, spoken of in the MEMORABLE RELA- 
TIONS which follow. ^ 

174 XVI. THEKE ARE DUTIES PROPER TO THE HUSBAND 

AND OTHERS PROPER TO THE WIFE ; AND THE WIFE CANNOT 
ENTER INTO THE DUTIES PROPER TO THE HUSBAND, NOR THE 
HUSBAND INTO THE DUTIES PROPER TO THE WIFE, SO AS TC 

PERFORM THEM ARIGHT. That there are duties proper to the 
husband, and others proper to the wife, needs not to be illustra- 
ted by an enumeration of them ; for they are many and various : 
and every one that chooses to do so can arrange them numerically 
according to their genera and species. The duties by which wives 
principally conjoin themselves with their husbands, are those 
which relate to the education of the children of each sex, and 
of the girls till they are marriageable. 

175. The wife cannot enter into the duties proper to the hus- 
band, nor on the other hand the husband into the duties proper 
to the wife, because they differ like wisdom and the love thereof, 
or like thought and the affection thereof, or like understanding 
and the will thereof. In the duties proper to husbands, the pri- 
mary agent is understanding, thought, and wisdom ; whereas in 
the duties proper to wives, the primary agent is will, affection, 
and love; and the wife from the latter performfa her duties, and 
the husband from the former performs his; wherefore their 
duties are naturally different, but still conjunctive in a successive 
series. Many believe that women can perform the duties of men, 
if they are initiated therein at an earlv age, as bo.ys are. They 
may indeed be initiated into the practice of such duties, but not 
into the judgement on which the propriety of duties interiorly 
depends ; wherefore such women as have been initiated into the 
duties of men, are bound in matters of judgement to consult 
men, and then, if they are left to their own disposal, they select 
from the counsels of men that which suits their own inclination. 
Some also suppose that women are equally capable with men 01 
elevating their intellectual vision, and into the same sphere ol 
light, and of viewing things with the same depth ; and tney have 
been led into this opinion by the writings of certain learned au- 
thoresses : but these writings, when examined in the spiritual 
world in the presence of the authoresses, were found to be th$ 
productions, not of judgement and wisdom, but of ingenuity 
and wit; and what proceeds from these on account of the 
elegance and neatness of the style in which it is written, has 
the appearance of sublimity and erudition ; yet only in the 

155 



175 177 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

of those who dignify all ingenuity by the name of wisdom. In 
like manner men cannot enter into the duties proper to women, 
and perform them aright, because they are not in the affections 
of women, which are altogether distinct from the affections of 
men. As the affections and perceptions of the male [and of the 
female] sex are thus distinct by creation and consequently by 
nature, therefore among the statutes given to the sons of Israel 
this also was ordained, " A. woman shall not put on the garment 
of a man, neither shall a man put on the garment of a woman ; 
because this is an alomiriation. Deut. xxii. 5. This was, because, 
all in the spiritual world are clothed according to their affec- 
tions ; and the two affections, of the woman and of the man, 
cannot be united except [as subsisting] between two, and in no 
case [as subsisting] in one. 

176. XVII. THESE DUTIES ALSO, ACCORDING TO MUTUAL 

AID, CONJOIN THE TWO INTO A ONE, AND AT THE SAME TIME 

CONSTITUTE ONE HOUSE. It is well known in the world that 
the duties of the husband in some way conjoin themselves 
with the duties of the wife, and that the duties of the wife adjoin 
themselves to the duties of the husband, and that these conjunc- 
tions and adjunctions are a mutual aid, and according thereto : 
but the primary duties, which confederate, consociate, and gather 
into one the souls and lives of two married partners, relate to the 
common care of educating their children; in relation to which 
care, the duties of the husband and of the wife are distinct, and 
yet join themselves together. They are distinct ; for the care of 
suckling and nursing the infants of each sex, and also the care of 
instructing the girls till they become marriageable, is properly 
the duty of the wife ; whereas the care of instructing the boys, 
from childhood to youth, and from youth till they become capa- 
ble of governing themselves, is properly the duty of the husband ; 
nevertheless the duties, of both tlie husband and the wife, are 
blended by means of counsel and support, and several other 
mutual aids. That these duties, both conjoined and distinct, or 
both common and peculiar, combine the minds of conjugial part- 
ners into one; and that this is effected by the love called storge, 
is well known. It is also well known, that these duties, re- 
garded in their distinction and conjunction, constitute one house. 

177, XVIII. MARRIED PARTNERS, ACCORDING- TO THESE 

CONJUNCTIONS, BECOME ONE MAN (JlOmd) MORE ATO MOBE. This 

coincides with what is contained in article VI. ; where it was ob- 
served, that conjunction is effected successively from the first 
days of marriage and that with those who are principled in love 
truly conjugial, it is effected more and more thoroughly to eter- 
nity; see above. They become one man in proportion as 
conjugial love increases ; and as this love in the neavens is 
genuine by virtue of the celestial and spiritual life of the angels, 
therefore two married partners are there called two, when they 
156 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 177 179 

are regarded as husband and wife, but one, when they are re- 
garded as angels. 

178. XIX. THOSE WHO ARE PRINCIPLED IN LOVE TRULY 

CONJUGIAL, ARE SENSIBLE OF THEIR BEING- A UNITED MAN, AND 

AS IT WERE ONE FLESH. That this is the case, must be con- 
firmed not from the testimony of any inhabitant of the earth, but 
from the testimony of the inhabitants of heaven ; for there is no 
love truly conjugial at this day with men on earth; and more- 
over, men on earth are encompassed with a gross body, which, 
deadens and absorbs the sensation that two married partners are 
a united man, and as it were one flesh ; and besides, those in the 
world who love their married partners only exteriorly, and not 
interiorly, do not wish to hear of such a thing : they think also 
on the subject lasciviously under the influence of the flesh. It is 
otherwise with the angels of heaven, who are principled in spi- 
ritual and celestial conjugial love, and are not encompassed with 
so gross a body as men on earth. From those among them who 
have lived for ages with their conjugial partners in heaven, I 
have heard, it testified, that they are sensible of their being so 
united, the husband with the wife, and the wife with the hus- 
band, and each in the other mutually and interchangeably, as 
also in the flesh, although they are separate. The reason why 
this phenomenon is so rare on earth, tiiey have declared to be 
this; because the union of the souls and minds of married part- 
ners on earth is made sensible in their flesh ; for the soul con- 
stitutes the inmost principles not only of the head, but also of the 
body : in like manner the mind, which is intermediate between 
the soul and the body, and which, although it appears to be in 
the head, is yet also actually in the whole body ; and they have 
declared, that this is the reason why the acts, which the soul 
and mind intend, flow forth instantly from the body ; and that 
hence also it is, that they themselves, after the rejection of the 
body in the former world, are perfect men. How, since the soul 
and the mind join themselves closely to the flesh of the body, in 
order that they may operate and produce their effects, it follows 
that the union of soul and mind with a married partner is made 
sensible also in the body as one flesh. As the angels made these 
declarations, I heard it asserted by the spirits who were present, 
that such subjects belong to angelic wisdom, being above ordi- 
nary apprehension; but these spirits were rational-natural, and 
not rational-spiritual. 

179. XX. LOVE TEULY CONJUOIAL, CONSIDERED IN ITSELF, 

IS A UNION OF SOULS, A CONJUNCTION OF MINDS, AND ABT EN- 
DEAVOUR TOWARDS CONJUNCTION IN THE BOSOMS AND THENCE IM 

THE BODY. That it is a union of souls and a conjunction of 
niinds, may be seen above, n. 158. The reason why it is an 
endeavour towards conjunction in the bosoms is, because the 
bosom (or breast) is as it were a place of public assembly, and a 

157 



L79j 180 OONJUGIAL LOVK 

royal council-chamber, while the body is as a populous city 
around it. The reason why the bosom is as it were a place ot 
public assembly, is, because all things, which by derivation from 
the soul and mind have their determination in the body, first 
flow into the bosom ; and the reason why it is as it were a royal 
council-chamber, is, because in the bosom there is dominion over 
all things of the body ; for in the bosom are contained the heart 
and lungs ; and the heart rules by the blood, and the lungs by 
the respiration, in every part. That the body is as a populous 
city around it, is evident. "When therefore the souls and minds 
of married partners are united, and love truly coniugial unites 
them, it follows that this lovely union flows into their bosoms, 
and through their bosoms into their bodies, and causes an endea- 
vour towards conjunction; and so much the more, because con- 
jugial love determines the endeavour to its ultimate, in order to 
complete its satisfactions ; and as the bosom is intermediate 
between the body and the mind, it is evident on what account 
conjugial love has fixed therein the seat of its delicate sensation* 
180. XXI. THE STATES OF THIS LOVE ABE INNOCENCE, 

PEACE, TRANQUILLITY, INMOST FRIENDSHIP, FULL CONFIDENCE, 
AND A MUTUAL DESIRE OF MIND AND HEART TO DO EVERT 
GOOD TO BACH OTHER ; AND THE STATES DERIVED PROM THESIS 
ARE BLESSEDNESS, SATISFACTION, DELIGHT AND PLEASURE ; AND 
FROM THE ETERNAL ENJOYMENT OF THESE IS DERIVED HEA- 
VENLY FELICITY. All these things are in conjugial love, and 
thence are derived from it, because its origin is from the marriage 
of good and truth, and this marriage is from the Lord ; and! 
because love is of such a nature, that it desires to communicate 
with another, whom it loves from the heart, yea, confer joys 
upon him, and thence to derive its own joys. This therefore is 
the case in an infinitely high degree witfi the divine love, which 
is in the Lord, in regard to man, whom he created a receptacle 
of both love and wisdom proceeding from himself; and as he 
created^ man (homo) for the reception of those principles, the 
man (vir) for the reception of wisdom, and the woman for the 
reception of the love of the man's wisdom, therefore from inmost 
jftinciples he infused into men (homines) conjugial love into 
which love -he might insinuate all things blessed, satisfactory, 
delightful, and pleasant, which proceed solely from his divine 
love through his divine wisdom, together with life, and flow into 
their recipients ; consequently, which flow into those who are 
principled in love truly conjugial ; for these alone are recipients. 
Mention is made of innocence, peace, tranquillity, inmost friend* 
ship, full confidence, and the mutual desire of doing every good 
to each other ; for innocence and peace relate to the soul, trail- 
cpillity to the mind, inmosS friendship to the breast, full confi 
aence to the heart, an 1 the mutual desire of doing every gx>od to 
each other, to the body as derived from the former principles, 
158 



AND UTS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 181, 183 

181. XXII. THESE THINGS OAK ONLY EXIST m THE MAR- 
itlAGE OF ONE MAN WITH ONE WIFE. TlllS 18 a conclusion from 

all that has been said above, and also from all that remains to be 
said ; therefore there is no need of any particular comment for 
its confirmation. 

#*#####H. 

182, To the above I will add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS. 
IIBST. After some weeks, I heard a voice from heaven, saying, 
44 Lo ! there is again an assembly on Parnassus : come hither, and 
we will shew you the way." I accordingly came ; and as I drew 
near, I saw a certain person on Helicon with a trumpet, with 
which he ^announced and proclaimed the assembly. And I saw 
the inhabitants of Athens and its suburbs ascending as before ; 
and in the midst of them thred novitiates from the world. They 
were of a Christian community ; one a priest, another a politician, 
and the third a philosopher. These they entertained on the way 
with conversation on various subjects, especially concerning the 
wise ancients, whom they named. They inquired whether they 
should see them, and were answered in the aflirmative, and were 
told, that if they were desirous, they might pay their respects to 
them, as they were courteous and affable. The novitiates then 
inquired after Demosthenes, Diogenes, and Epicurus ; and were 
answered, " Demosthenes is not here, but with Plato ; Diogenes, 
with his scholars, resides under Helicon, because of his little 
attention to worldly things, and his being engaged in heavenly 
contemplations ; Epicurus dwells in a border to the west, and has 
no intercourse with us ; because we distinguish between good and 
evil affections, and say, that good affections are one with wisdom, 
and evil affections are contrary to it." When they had ascended 
the hill Parnassus, some guards there brought water in crysta. 
cups from a fountain in the mount, and said, " This is water from 
the fountain which, according to ancient fable, was broken open 
by the hoof of the horse Pegasus, and was afterwards consecrated 
to nine virgins : but by the winged horse Pegasus they meant the 
understanding of truth, by which comes wisdom ; by the lioofs cf 
his feet they understood experiences whereby comes natural 
intelligence ; and by the nine virgins they understood knowledges 
and sciences of every kind. These things are now called fables ; 
but they were correspondences, agreeable to the primeval method 
of speaking." Then those who attended the three strangers said, 
"Be not surprised; the guards are told thus to speak; but 
ne know that to drink water from the fountain, means to be 
instructed concerning truths, and by truths concerning goods, 
and thereby to grQW wise." After this, they entered the ralla 
dium, and with them the three novitiates, the priest, the politi 
cian, and the philosopher; and imntediately the laureled j -phi 
who were seated at the tables, asked, "WHAT NEWS FK* & rim 

They replied, "This is news; that a certain person 

159 



182 COJNTJUGIAL LOVE 

declares that lie coi. verses with angels, and has his sight opened 
into the spiritual world, equally as into the natural world ; and 
he brings thence much new information, and, among other parti- 
culars, asserts, that a man lives a man after death, as he lived 
before in the world ; that he sees, hears, speaks, as before in the 
world ; that he is clothed and decked with ornaments, as before 
in. the world ; that he hungers and thirsts, eats and drinks, as 
before in the world ; that he enjoys conjugial delights, as before 
in the world ; that he sleeps and wakes, as before in the world ; 
that in the spiritual world there are land and water, mountains 
and hills, plains and valleys, fountains and rivers, paradises and 
groves ; also that there are palaces and houses, cities and villages, 
as in the natural world ; and further, that there are writings and 
books, employments and trades ; -also precious stones, gold and 
silver; in a word, that there are all such things there as there 
are on earth, and that those things in the heavens are infinitely 
more perfect ; with this difference only, that all things in the 
spiritual world are from a spiritual origin, and therefore are 
spiritual, because they are from the sun of that world, which is 
pure love ; whereas all things in the natural world are from a 
natural origin, and therefore are natural and material, because 
they are from the sun of that world, which is pure fire ; in short, 
that a man after death is perfectly a man, yea more perfectly than 
before in the world ; for before in the world he was in a material 
body, but in the spiritual world he is in a spiritual body." 
Hereupon the ancient sages asked, "What do the people on the 
earth think of such information ?" The three strangers replied, 
" We know that it is true, because we are here, and have viewed 
and examined everything ; wherefore we will tell you what lias 
been said and reasoned about it on earth." Then the PJBIKST said, 
" Those of our order, when they first heard such relations, called 
them visions, then fictions ; afterwards they insisted that the 
man had seen spectres, and lastly they hesitated, and said, 
4 Believe them who will ; we have hitherto taught that a man 
will not be in a body after death until the day of the last judge- 
ment.' 37 Then the sages asked, "Are there no intelligent per- 
sons among those of your order, who can prove and evince the 
truth, that a man lives a man after death ?" The priest said, 
"There are indeed some who prove it, but not to the conviction 
of others. Those who prove it say, that it is contrary to 
Bound reason to believe, that a man does not live a man till the 
day of the last judgement, and that in the mean while he is a soul 
without a body. What is the soul, or where is it in the interim S 
Is it a vapor, or some wind floating in the atmosphere, or some 
thing hidden in the bowels of the earth? Have the souls of 
Adam and Eve, and of all their posterity, now for six thousand 
years, or sixty ages, been flying about in the universe, or been 
shut up in the bowels of the earth, waiting for the last judge* 
160 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 183 

merit? What can be more anxious and miserable than snch an 
expectation ? May not their lot in snch a case be compared with 
that of prisoners bound hand and foot, and lying in a dungeon ? 
If snch be a man's lot after death, would it not be better to be 
born an ass than a man? Is it not also contrary to reason to 
believe, that the soul can be re-clothed with its body? Is not 
the body eaten up by worms, mice, and fish? And can a bony 
skeleton that has been parched in the sun, or mouldered into 
dusty be introduced into a new body ? And how could the cada- 
verous and putrid materials be collected, and reunited to the 
souls? When such questions as these are urged, those of our 
order do not offer any answers grounded in reason, but adhere to 
their creed, saying, i We keep reason under obedience to faith. 3 
With respect to collecting all the parts of the human body from 
the grave at the last day, they say, l This is a work of omnipo- 
tence ;' and when they name omnipotence and faith, reason is 
banished ; and I am free to assert, that in such case sound reason 
is not appreciated, and by some is regarded as a spectre ; yea, 
they can say to sound reason, Thou art unsound.' " On hearing 
these things, the Grecian sages said, u Surely such paradoxes 
vanish and disperse of themselves, as being full of contradiction ; 
and yet in the world at this day they cannot be dispersed by 
sound reason. What can be believed more paradoxical than 
what is told respecting the last judgement ; that the universe 
will then be destroyed, and that the stars of heaven will then fall 
down upon the earth, which is less than the stars ; and that then 
the bodies of men, whether they be mouldering carcases, or 
mummies eaten by men, or reduced to mere dust, will meet and 
be united again with their souls? We, during our abode in the 
world, from the inductions of reason, believed the immortality of 
the souls of men ; and we also assigned regions for the blessed, 
which we call the elysian fields ; and we believed that the soul 
was a human image or appearance, but of a fine and delicate 
nature, because spiritual." After this, the assembly turned to 
the other stranger, who in the world had been a POLITICIAN, 
H6 confessed that he did not believe in a life after death, and 
that respecting the new information which he had heard about 
it, he thought it all fable and fiction. "In my meditations on 
the subject," said he, " I used to say to myself, How can souls 
be bodies? does not the whole man lie dead in the grave? is 
not the eye there; how can he see? is not the ear there, how 
can he hear? whence must he have a mouth wherewith to 
apeak? Supposing anything of a man to live after death, must 
it not resemble a spectre? and how can a spectre eat and 
drink, or how can it enjoy conjugial delights? whence can it 
have clothes, houses, meats, &c. ? Besides, spectres, which are 
mere aerial images, appear as if they really existed ; and jet they 
do not These and similar sentiments I used to entertain in the 

11 161 



182, 183 OONJUGIAL LOYE 

world concerning the Jfe of men after death ; but now, since I 
have seen all ttiings, and touched them with ray handsel am 
convinced by my very senses that I am a man as I was in the 
world ; so that I know no other than that I live now as I lived 
formerly; with only this difference, that my reason now is 
sounder. At times I have been ashamed of my former thoughts.' 1 
The PHILOSOPHER gave much the same account of himself as the 
politician had done; only differing in this respect, that he con- 
sidered the new relations which he had heard concerning a life 
after death, as having reference to opinions and hypotheses which 
he had collected from the ancients and moderns. When the 
three strangers had done speaking, the sophi were all in amaze- 
ment ; and those who were of the Socratic school, said, that from 
the news they had heard from the earth, it was quite evident, 
that the interiors of human minds had been successively closed ; 
and that in the world at this time a belief in what is false shines 
as truth, and an infatuated ingenuity as wisdom ; and that the 
light of wisdom, since their times, has descended from the 
interiors of the brain into the mouth beneath the nose, where it 
appears to the eyes as a shining of the lip, while the speech of 
the mouth thence proceeding appears as wisdom. Hereupon 
one of the young scholars said, "How stupid are the minds of 
the inhabitants of the earth at this day ! I wish we had hero the 
disciples of Heraclitus, who weep at every thing, and of Demo- 
critus, who laugh at every thing ; for then we should hear much 
lamentation and much laughter." When the assembly broke 
up, they gave the three novitiates the insignia of their authority, 
which were copper plates, on which were engraved some hiero- 

lyphic characters ; with which they took their leave and 
eparted. 

183. THE SECOND MEMORABLE RELATION. I saw in the 
eastern quarter a grove of palm-trees and laurels, set in winding 
rows, which I approached and entered ; and walking in the wind- 
ing paths I saw at the end a garden, which formed the centre ot 
the grove. There was a little bridge dividing the grove from the 
garden, and at the bridge two gates, one on the side next the 
grove, -and the other on the side next the garden. And as I drew 
sear., the keeper opened the gates, and 1 asked him the name of 
the garden. He said, u ADRAHANDOKI; which is the delight oi 
conjugial love." I entered, and lo ! there were olive-trees ; and 
among them ran pendulous vines, and underneath and among 
them were shrubs in flower. In the midst of the garden was s 
grassy circus, on which were seated husbands and wives, and 
youths and maidens, in pairs ; and in the midst of the circus, on 
an elevated piece of ground, there was a little fountain, which, 
from the strength of its spring, threw its water to a considerable 
height. On approaching the circus I saw two angels clad in 
purple and scarlet, in conversation with those who were seated on 
.162 



AUD ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 183 

the grass. They were conversing respecting the origin of con- 
jugial love, and respecting its delights ; and this being the 
subject of their discourse, the attention was eager, and the recep- 
tion full ; and hence there was an exaltation in the speech of the 
angels as from the fire of love. I collected the following sum- 
mary of what was said. They began with the difficulty of inves- 
tigating and perceiving the origin ofconjngial love; because it* 
origin is divinely celestial, it being divine love, divine wisdom^ 
and divine use , which three proceed as a one from the Lord, and 
thence flow as a one into the souls of men, and through t'hetr 
souls into their minds, and there into the interior affections and 
thoughts, and through these into the desires next to the body, 
and from these through the breast into the genital region, where 
all principles derived from their first origin exist together, and, 
m ^union^ with successive principles, constitute conjngial love. 
After this the angels said, "Let us communicate together by 
questions and answers ; since the perception of a thing, imbibed 
by hearing only, flows in indeed, but does not remain unless the 
hearer also thinks of it from himself, and asks questions con- 
cerning it." Then some of that conjugial assembly said to the 
angels, "We have heard that the origin of conjugial love is 
divinely celestial ; becatise it is by virtue of influx from the Lord 
into the souls of men ; and, as it is from the Lord, that it is love, 
wisdom, and use, which are three essentials, together constituting 
one divine essence, and that nothing but what is of the divine 
essence can proceed from him, and flow into the inmost principle 
of man (homo), which is called his soul ; and that these three 
essentials are changed into analogous and corresponding prin- 
ciples in their descent into the body. We ask therefore now in 
the first place, What is meant by the third proceeding divine 
essential, which is called use?" The angels replied, "Liove and 
wisdom, without use, are only abstract ideas of thought ; which 
also after some continuance in the mind pass away like the winds ; 
but in use they are collected together, and therein become one 
principle, which is called real. Love cannot rest unless it is as 
work; for love is the essential active principle of life ; neither 
can wisdom exist and subsist unless when it is at work from and 
with love ; and to work is use ; therefore we define use to be the 
doing good from love by wisdom ; use being essential good. As 
these three essentials, love, wisdom, and use, flow into the souls 
of men, it may appear from what ground it is said, that all good 
is from God ; for every thing done from lovebv wisdom, is called 
good ; and use also is something done. What is love without 
wisdom but a mere infatuation \ and what is love with wisdom 
without use, but a puff of the mind I Whereas love and wisdom 
with use not only constitute man (homo\ but also are man ; 
yea, what possibly you will be surprised at, they propagate man ; 
for in the seed of a man (mr) is his BOU! in a perfect human form, 

163 



183 COIUtlOIAL LOVE 

covered with substances from the purest principles of nature; 
whereof a body is formed in the womb of the mother. This is 
the supreme and ultimate use of the divine love by the divine 
wisdom." Finally the angels said, " We will hence come to this 
conclusion, that; all fructification, propagation, and prolification, 
is origin ally derived from the influx of love, wisdom, and use from 
the Lord, from an immediate influx into the souls of men, from 
a mediate influx into the souls of animals, and from an influx 
still more mediate into the inmost principles of vegetables; and 
all these effects are wrought in ultimates from first principles. 
That fructifications, propagations, and prolifications, are con- 
tinuations of creation, is evident; for creation cannot be from 
any other source^ than from divine love by divine wisdom in 
divine use ; wherefore all things in the universe are procreated 
and formed from use, in use, and for use." Afterwards those 
who were seated on the grassy couches, asked the angels, 
" Whence are the innumerable and ineffable delights of conjngiaJ 
love?" The angels replied, " They are from the uses of love and 
wisdom, as may be plain from this consideration, that so far as 
any one loves to grow wise, for the sake of genuine use, so far ho 
is in the vein and potency of conjugial love; and so far as he is 
in these two, so far he is in the delights thereof. Use effects 
this ; because love and wisdom are delighted with each other, 
and as it were sport together like little'children ; and as they 
grow up, they enter into genial conjunct! on, which is effected by 
a kind of betrothing, nuptial solemnity, marriage, and propaga 
tion, and this with continual variety to eternity. These opera- 
tions take place between love and wisdom inwardly in use. 
Those delights in their first principles are imperceptible; but 
they become more and more perceptible as they descend thence 
by degrees and enter the body. They enter by degrees from the 
soul into the interiors of a man's mind, from these into its 
exteriors, from these into the bosom, and from the bosom into 
the genital region. Those celestial nuptial sportsin the soul are 
not at all perceived by man ; but they thence insinuate them- 
selves into the interiors of the mind under a species of peace and 
innocence, and into the exteriors of the mind under a species of 
blessedness, satisfaction, and delight; in the bosom under a 
sspecies-of the delights of inmost friendship ; and in the genital 
region, from contimial influx even from the soul with the essen- 
tial sense of conjugial love, as the delight of delights. These 
nuptial sports of love and wisdom in iise in the soul, in proceed- 
ing towards the bosom, become permanent, and present them- 
selves sensible therein under an infinite variety of delights; and 
from the wonderful communication of the bosom with the genital 
region, the delights therein become the delights of conjugial lore, 
winch are superior to all other delights in heaven and in the 
world; because the use of conjugial love is the most excellent ol 
164 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 183, 

A-i uses, the procreation of the human race being thence derived, 
and from the human race the angelic heaven." To this the 
angels added, that those who are not principled iu the love of 
wisdom ^for the sake of use from the Lord, do not know anything 
concerning the variety of the innumerable delights of love truly 
conjugial; for with those who do not love to grow wise from 
genuine^ truths, but love to be insane from false principles, and 
by this insanity perform evil uses from some particular love, the 
way to the soul is closed ; hence the heavenly nuptial sports of 
love and wisdom in the soul, being more and more intercepted, 
cease, and together with them conjugial love ceases with its vein, 
its potency, and its delights. 33 On hearing these statements the 
audience said, " We now perceive that conjugial love is according 
to the love of growing wise for the sake of uses from the Lord." 
The angels replied that it was so. And instantly upon the 
heads of some of the audience there appeared wreaths of flowers ; 
and on their asking, " Why is this?*' the angels said, "Because 
they have understood more profoundly :" and immediately they 
departed from the garden, and the latter in the midst of them. 



ON THE CHANGE OF THE STATE OP LIFE WHICH TAKES PLACE 
WITH MEN AND WOMEN BY MARRIAGE. 

184 WHAT is meant by states of life, and their changes, 
is very well known to the learned and the wise, but unknown to 
the unlearned and the simple; wherefore it maybe expedient to 
premise somewhat on the subject. The state of a man's life is 
its quality jand^as there are iu every man two faculties which 
constitute his life, and which are called the understanding and 
the will, the state of a man's life is its quality as to the under- 
standing and the will Hence it is evident, that changes of the 
state of life mean changes of quality as to the things apper- 
taining to the understanding and the will That every man 
is continually changing as to those two principles, but with a 
distinction of variations before marriage and after it, is the point 
proposed to 'be proved in this section ; which shall be done in the 
following propositions : L The state of a man's (homo) lifefwm 
infancy even to the end of his life, and afterwards to eternity, is 
continually changing. II. In like manner a man's internal form 
which is that of his spirit, is continually changing. IIL These 
changes differ in the case of men and of women since men from 
creation are forms of "knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom^ and 
women are forms of the love of those principles as existing with 
men. IV. With men th&re ^s an etewtion of the mind into 
superior light) and with women an elevation of the mind into 

165 



184, 185 CONJUGIAL LOVE. 

superior heat : and that the woman is made sensible of the delights 
of her heat in the marts light V. With loth men and women, 
the states of life before marriage are differentfrom what they are 
afterwards. Yl. With rnamed partners the states of life after 
ma/rriage are changed and succeed each other according to the 
conjunctions of their minds by conjugial love. VII. Marriage 
also induces other forms in the souls and minds of married part- 
ners. VIII. The woman is actually formed into a wife according 
to the description in the look of creation. IX. This formation 
is effected on the part of the wife ly secret means ; and this is 
meant by the woman's being created while the man slept. X. 
This formation on the part of the wife is qffiected by the con- 
junction of her own will with the internal will of the man. XL 
The end herein is, that the will of both become one^and that thus 
"both may become one man (homo). XII. TMs formation on the 
part of the wife is effected by an appropriation of the affections 
of the husband. XlIL This formation on the part of the wife u 
effected by a reception of the propagations of tlie soul of the hus- 
band, with the delight arising from, her desire to be the love of her 
husband's wisdom. XIV". Thus amaiden is formed into a wife, 
and a youth into a husband. XV. In the marriage of one man 
with one wife, between whom there exists love truly cowjugial, 
the wife Becomes more and more a wife, and the husband more 
and more a husband. XVI. Thus also their forms are successively 
perfected and ennobled from within. XV II. Children bom of 
parents who are principled in love truly conjugial^ derive from 
them the conlugial principle of good and truth j whence they have 
an inclinat^on and f acuity ^if sons , to perceive the things relating 
to wisdom, and if 'daughters, to love those things which wisdom 
teaches. XVIIl. The reason of this is "because the soul of the 
offspring is from the father and its clothing from the mother. We 
proceed to the explanation of each article. 

185. I. THE STATE OF A MAN'S (homo) LIFE, PJROM INFANCY 

EVEN TO THE END OF HIS LIFE, AND ABTJEBWAKDS TO KTEBNITY, 

is CONTINUALLY CHANGING-. The common states of a man's life 
are called infancy, childhood, youth, manhood, and old age. 
That every man, whose life is continued in the world, successively 
Basses from one state into another, thus from the first to the last, 
s well known. The transitions into those ages only become 
evident by the intervening spaces of time: that nevertheless they 
are progressive from one moment to another, thus continual, is 
obvious to reason ; for the case is similar with a man as with a 
tree, which grows and increases every instant of time, even the 
most minute, from the casting of the seed into the earth. These 
momentaneous progressions are also changes of state ; for the 
subsequent adds something to the antecedent, which perfects the 
Btate. The changes which take place in a man's internals, are 
166 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 185, 186 

more perfectly continuous than those which take place in his ex, 
ternals ; because a man's internals, by which we mean the things 
appertaining to his mind or spirit, are elevated into a superior 
degree above his externals ; and in those priciples which are in 
a superior degree, a thousand effects take place in the same 
instant in which one effect is wrought in externals. The changes 
which take place in internals, are changes of the state of the will 
as to affections, and of the state of the understanding as to 
thoughts. The successive changes of state of the latter and of 
the former are specifically meant in the proposition. The changes 
of these two lives or faculties are perpetual with every man from 
infancy even to the end of his life, and afterwards to eternity ; 
because there is no end to knowledge, still less to intelligence, and 
least of all to wisdom ; for there is infinity and eternity in the 
extent of these principles, by virtue of the Infinite and Eternal 
One, from whom they are derived. Hence comes the philoso- 
phical tenet of the ancients, that everything is divisible in inji- 
nitum / to which may be added, that it is multiplicable in like 
manner. The angels assert, that by wisdom from the Lord they 
are being perfected to eternity ; which also means to infinity ; 
because eternity is the infinity of time. 

186. II. IN LIKE MANNER A MAN'S (homO\ INTERNAL FORM 
WHICH IS THAT OF HIS SPIRIT, IS CONTINUALLY CHANGING. 

The reason why this form is continually changing as the state of 
the man's life is changed, is, because there is nothing that exists 
but in a form, and state induces that form; wherefore it is the 
same whether we say that the state of a man's life is changed, or 
that its form is changed. All a man's affections and thoughts 
are in forms, and thence from forms ; for forms are their subjects. 
If affections and thoughts were not in subjects, which are formed, 
they might exist also in skulls without a brain ; which would be 
the same thing as to suppose sight without an eye, hearing with- 
out an ear, and taste without a tongue. It is well known that 
there are subjects of these senses, and that these subjects are 
forms. The state of life, and thence the form, with a man, is 
continually changing ; because it is a truth which the wise have 
taught and still teach, that there does not exist a sameness, or 
absolute identity of two things, still less of several; as there 
are not two human faces the same, and still less several : the case 
is similar in things successive, in that no subsequent state of life 
is the same as a preceding one ; whence it follows, that there is a 
perpetual change of the state of life with every man, consequently 
also a perpetual change of form, especially of his internals. But 
as these considerations do not teach anything respecting mar- 
riages, but only prepare the way for knowledges concerning them, 
and since also they are mere philosophical inquiries of the under- 
standing, which, with some persons, are difficult pf apprehension 
we will pass them without further discussion, 

1CT 



187, 188 coNJtraiAL LOVE 

1ST, III. THESE CHANGES DIFFER IK THE CASE OF 

AND OF WOMEN *, SINCE MEN FEOM CREATION ARE FORMS OF 

KNOWLEDGE, INTELLIGENCE, AND WISDOM J AND WOMEN ARE 
FOEMS OF THE LOVE OF THOSE PRINCIPLES AS EXISTING WITH 

MEN. That men were created forms of the understanding, and 
that women were created forms of the love of the understanding* 
of men, may be explained above, n. 90. That the changes 
of state, which succeed both with men and women from infancy 
to mature age, are for the perfecting of forms, the intellectual 
form with men, and the voluntary with women, follows as a con- 
sequence : hence it is clear, that the changes with men differ 
from those with women ; nevertheless with both, the external 
form which is of the body is perfected according to the perfecting 
of the internal form, which, is of the mind; for the mind acts 
upon the body, and not vice versa. This is the reason why in- 
fants in heaven become men of stature and comeliness according 
as they increase in intelligence; it is otherwise with infants on 
earth, because they are encompassed with a material body like 
the animals ; nevertheless they agree in this, that they first grow 
in inclination to such things as allure their bodily senses, and 
afterwards by little and little to such things as affect the internal 
thinking sense, and by degrees to such things as tincture tho 
will with affection ; and when they arrive at an age which is mid- 
way between mature and immature, the conjugial inclination 
begins, which is that of a maiden to a youth, and of a youth to a 
maiden ; and as maidens in the heavens, like those on earth from 
an innate prudence conceal their inclination to marriage, tho 
youths there know no other than that they affect the maidens with 
love ; and this also appears to them in consequence of their mas- 
culine eagerness ; which they also derive from an influx of love 
from the fair sex; concerning which influx we shall speak par- 
ticularly elsewhere. From tiiese considerations the truth of the 
proposition is evident, that the changes of state with men differ 
from those with women; since men from creation are forms of 
knowledge,,, intelligence and wisdom, and women are forms of 
the love of those principles as existing with men. 
188. IV. WITH MEN THERE is AN ELEVATION OF TUB 

MIND INTO 8UFBKIOB LIGHT, AND WITH WOMEN AN ELEVATION 
Off THE MIND INTO SOTEMOB HEAT; AND THIS WOMAN IS MADJfi 
SENSIBLE OF THE DELIGHTS OF HER HEAT IN THE MAN ? S LIGHT. 

By the light into which men are elevated, we mean intelligence 
and wisdom ; because spiritual light, which proceeds from tho 
sun of the spiritual world, which sun in its essence is love, 
acts in equality or unity with those two principles ; atid bv tho 
heat into which women are elevated, we mean conjn&i&l love , 
because spiritual heat, which proceeds from the sun of that world, 
in its essence is love, and with women it is love conjoining itself 
with intelligence and wisdom in men; which love in its complex 
168 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 188 190 

is called corijugial love, and by determination becomes that love. 
It is called elevation into superior light and heat, because it is 
elevation into the light and heat whicn the angels of the superior 
heavens enjoy: it is also an actual elevation, as from a thick mist 
into pure air, and from an inferior region of the air into a su- 
perior, and from thence into ether ; therefore elevation into su- 
perior light with men is elevation into superior intelligence, and 
thence into wisdom ; in which also there are ascending degrees 
of elevation; but elevation into superior heat with women is au 
elevation into chaster and purer conjugial love, and continually 
towards the conjugial principle, which from creation lies con- 
cealed in their inmost principles. These elevations, considered 
in themselves, are openings of the mind ; for the human mind is 
distinguished into regions, as the world is distinguished into 
regions as to the atmosphere ; the lowest of which is the watery, 
the next above is the aerial, and still higher is the ethereal, 
above which there is also the highest : into similar regions the 
mind of man is elevated as it is opened, with men by wisdom, 
and with women by love truly conjugial. 

189. We have said, that the woman is made sensible of the 
delights of her heat in the man's light ; by which we mean that 
the woman is made sensible of the delights of her love in the 
man's wisdom, because wisdom is the receptacle ; and wherever 
love finds such a receptacle corresponding to itself, it is in the 
enjoyment of its delights: but we do not mean, that heat with 
its light is delighted out of forms, but within them ; and spiritual 
heat is delighted with spiritual light in their forms to a greater 
degree, because those forms by virtue of wisdom and love are 
vital, and thereby susceptible. This may be illustrated by what 
are called the sports of heat with light in the vegetable kingdom: 
out of the vegetable there is only a simple conjunction of heat 
and light, but within it there is a kind of sport*of the one with 
the other; because there they are in forms or receptacles; for 
they pass through astonishing meandering ducts, and in the 
inmost principles therein they tend to use in bearing fruit, and 
also breathe forth their satisfactions far and wide into the atmo- 
sphere, which they fill with fragrance. The delight of spiritual 
heat with spiritual light is more vividly perceivable in human 
forms, in winch spiritual heat is conjugial love, and spiritual 
light is wisdom. 

190. Y. WITH BOTH MEK AND WOMEN, THE STATES OF 

LIMJ BKFORK MARRIAGE ARE DIFFERENT FROM WHAT THEY ABB 

AFTERWARDS. Before marriage, each sex passes through two 
states, one previous and the other subsequent to the inclination 
for marriage. The changes of both these states, and the con- 
sequent formations of rnincls, proceed in successive order accord- 
ing to their continual increase; but we have not leisure^now to 
describe these changes, which are various and different in their 

169 



190 192 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

several subjects. The inclination to marriage, previous to mar- 
riage, are only imaginary in the mind, and become more and 
more sensible in the body; but the states thereof after marriage 
are states of conjunction and also of prolification, which, it is 
evident, differ from the forgoing states as effects differ from 
intentions. 

191. VI. "Wrrn MARRIED PARTNERS THE STATES OF LIFE 

AFTER MARRIAGE ARE CHANGED AND SUCCEED EACH OTHER 
ACCORDING TO THE CONJUNCTIONS OF THEIR MINDS BY CONJD- 

GIAL LOVE. The reason why changes of the state and the suc- 
cessions thereof after marriage, with both the man and the wife, 
are according to conjugial love with each, and thus are either 
conjunctive or disjunctive of their minds, is, because conjugial 
love is not only various but also different with conjugial pairs: 
various, with those who love each other interiorly ; for witn such 
it has its intermissions, notwithstanding its being inwardly in its 
heat regular and permanent ; but it is different with those who love 
each other only exteriorly ; for with such its intermissions do not 
proceed from similar causes, but from alternate cold and heat. 
The true ground of these differences is, that with the latter the 
body is the principal agent, the ardour of which spreads itself 
around, and forcibly draws into communion with it the inferior 
principles of the mind ; whereas, with the former, who love each 
other interiorly, the mind is the principal agent, and brings 
the body into communion with it. It appears as if love 
ascended from the body into the soul ; because as soon as the 
body catches the allurement, it enters through the eyes, as 
through doors, into the mind, and thus through the sight, as 
through an outer court, into the thoughts, and instantly into the 
love : nevertheless it descends from the mind, and acts upon the 
inferior principles according to their orderly arrangement ; 
therefore the lascivious mina acts lasciviously, and the chaste 
mind chastely ; and the latter arranges the body, whereas the 
former is arranged by the body. 

192. VII. MARRIAGE ALSO INDUCES OTHER FORMS IN THK 
SOULS AND MINDS OF MARRIED PARTNERS. Tliat marriage has 
this effect cannot be observed in the natural world ; because in 
this world souls and minds are encompassed with a material 
body, through which the mind rarely shines : the men (homines) 
also of modern times, more than the ancients, are taught from 
their infancy to assume feigned countenances, whereby they 
deeply conceal the affections of their minds ; and this is the rea- 
son why the forms of minds are not known and distinguished 
according to their different quality, as existing before marriage 
and after it : nevertheless that the forms of souls and minda 
differ after marriage from what they were before, is very manifest 
from their appearance in the spiritual world ; for they are then 
spirits and angels, who are minds and souls in a humap form, 

170 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 192, 193 

stripped of tlieir outward coverings, which had been composed of 
watery and earthy elements, and of aerial vapors thence arising ; 
and when these are cast off, the forms of the minds are plainly 
Been, such as they had been inwardly in their bodies ; and the'i 
it is clearly perceived, that there is a difference in regard to 
those forms with those who live in marriage, and with these 
who do not. In general, married partners have an interior 
beauty of countenance, the man deriving from the wife the 
ruddy bloom of her love, and the wife from the man the fair 
splendor of his wisdom ; for two married partners in the spi- 
ritual world are united as to their souls ; and moreover there 
appears in each a human fulness. This is the case in heaven, 
because there are no marriages (conjugia) in any other place ; 
beneath heaven there are only nuptial connections (oonnubia), 
which are alternately tied and loosed. 

193. VIII. THE WOMAN is ACTUALLY FORMED INTO A WIFE, 

ACCOKDING TO THK DESCRIPTION IN THE BOOK OF CREATION. 

In this book it is said, that the woman was created out of the 
man's rib, and that the man said, when she was brought to him, 
"This is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; and she shall 
be called Eve (IschaK), because she was taken out of man (fsc/i) ;" 
Gen. chap. ii. 21 23. A rib of the breast, in the Word, signi- 
fies, in the spiritual sense, natural truth. This is signified by the 
ribs which the bear carried between his teeth, Dan. vii, 5 ; for 
bears signify those who read the Word in the natural sense, and 
eee truths therein without understanding : the man's breast sig 
nities that essential and peculiar principle, which is distinguished 
from the breast of the woman : that this is wisdom, may be seen 
above, n. 187 ; for truth supports wisdom as the ribs do the breast 
These things are signified, because the breast is that part of a man 
in which all his principles are as in their centre, From these 
considerations, it is evident, that the woman was created out of the 
man by a transfer of his peculiar wisdom, which is the same thing 
as to be created out of natural truth ; and that the love thereof 
was transferred from the man into the woman, to the end that 
conjugial love might exist ; and that this was done in order that 
the love of the wife and not self-love might be in the man : for the 
wife, in consequence of her innate disposition, cannot do other- 
wise than convert self-love, as existing with the man, into his 
love to herself; and I have been informed, that this is effected 
by virtue of the wife's love itself, neither the man nor the wife 
being conscious of it : hence> no man can possibly love his wife 
with true conjugial love, who from a principle of self-love is vain 
and conceited of his own intelligence. When this arcanum 
relating to the creation of the woman from the man, is under- 
stood, it may then be seen, that the woman in like manner is as it 
were created or formed from the man in marriage ; and that this 
is effected by the wife, or rather through her by the Lord, who 

171 



193, 194 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

imparts inclinations to women whereby they produce such an 
effect : for the wife receives into herself the image of a man, 
and thereby appropriates to herself his affections, as may be seen 
above, n. 183 ; and conjoins the man's internal will with her own, 
of which we shall treat presently ; and also claims to herself the 
propagated forms (propagines) of his soul, of which also we shall 
speak elsewhere. From these considerations it is evident, that, 
according to the description in. the book of Genesis, interiorly 
understood, a woman is formed into a wife by such things as she 
takes out of the husband and his breast, and implants in herself. 

19tL IX. THIS FORMATION 18 EFFECT KD ON THE PART OF 
THE WIFE BY SECRET MEANS J AND THIS IS MEANT BY THE 
WOMAN'S BEING CREATED WHILE THE MAN SLEPT. It IS Written 

in the book of Genesis, that Jehovah God caused a deep sleep to 
fall upon Adam, so that he slept ; and that then he took one of 
his ribs, and builded it into a woman : chap. ii. 21, 22. That 
by the man's sleep and sleeping is signified his entire ignorance 
that the wife is formed and as it were created from him, appears 
from what was shewn in the preceding chapter, and also from the 
innate prudence and circumspection of wives, not to divulge 
anything concerning their love, or their assumption of the affec- 
tions of the man's life, and thereby of the transfer of his wisdom 
into themselves. That this is effected on the part of the wife 
without the husband's knowledge, and while lie is as it wore 
sleeping, thus by secret means, is evident from what was ex- 
plained above, n. 166 168 ; where also it is clearly shewn, that 
the prudence with which women are influenced herein, was 
implanted in them, from creation, and consequently from their 
birth, for reasons of necessity, so that conjugial love, friendship, 
and confidence, and thereby the blessedness of dwelling together 
and a happy life, may be secured: wherefore for the right 
accomplishing of this, the man is enjoined to leave hu father <md 
mother and to cleave to Ms wife^ Gen. ii. 24 ; Mutt. xix. 4, 5. 
The father and mother, whom the man is to leave, in a spiritual 
sense signify liisproprium of will &\\&pi i oprium of understanding; 
and the proprium of a man's (homo) will is to love himself, and 
\hpfopriwn of his understanding is to love his own wisdom; 
and to cleave to his wife signifies to devote himself to the love ot 
his wife. Those two pr&priwns are deadly evils to man, if they 
remain with him, and the love of those t wo propriwm is changed 
into conjugial love, so far as a man qleaves to his wife, that is, so 
far as lie receives her love ; see above, n. 193, and elsewhere. 
To sleep signifies to be in. ignorance and unconcern ; a father 
arid a mother signify the two propriums of a man (homo)^ tlio 
one of the will and the other of the understanding ; and to 
cleave to, signifies to devote one's self to the love of any one, aa 
might be abundantly confirmed from passages in other parts of 
the Word ; but this would be foreign to our present subject. 
172 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 195 198 

195. X. TfTIS FORMATION ON THE PAttT OF THE WIFE IS 
EFFECTED BY THE CONJUNCTION OF HER OWN WILL WITH THE 

INTERNAL WILL OF THE MAN. That the man possesses rational 
and moral wisdom, and that the wife conjoins herself with those 
things which relate to his moral wisdom, may be seen above, n. 
163 165. The things which relate to rational wisdom con- 
stitute the man's understanding, and those which relate to moral 
wisdom constitute his will. The wife conjoins herself with those 
things which constitute the man's will. It is the same, whether 
we say that the wife conjoins herself, or that she conjoins her 
will to the man's will ; because she is born under the influence 
of the will, and consequently in all her actions acts from the will. 
The reason why it is said with the man's internal will, is, because 
the man's will resides in his understanding, and the man's 
intellectual principle is the inmost principle of the woman, 
according to what was observed above concerning the formation 
of the woman from the man, n. 32, and in other places. Tho 
man has also an external will ; but this frequently takes its 
tincture from simulation and dissimulation. This will the wife 
notices ; but she does not conjoin herself with it, except pr<- 
tendedly or in the way of sport. 

196. XL THE END HEREIN is, THAT THE WILL OF BOTH 

MAY BECOME ONE, AND THAT TITUS DOTII MAY BECAME ONE M^N 

(homo) : for whoever conjoins to himself the will of another, also 
conjoins to himself his understanding; for the understanding 
regarded in itself is merely the minister and servant of the wilL 
That tliis is the case, appears evidently from the affection of Iov3, 
which moves the understanding to think as it directs. Eveiy 
affection of love belongs to the will ; for what a man loves that 
he also wills. From these considerations it follows, that whoever 
conjoins to himself the will of a man conjoins to himself the 
whole man ; hence it is implanted as a principle in the wife's love 
to unite the will of her husband to her own will ; for hereby 
the wife becomes the husband's, and the husband the wife's ; 
thus both become one man (homo}. 

197. XII. Tins FORMATION [ON THE PART OF THE WIFE] 

18 EFFECTED BY AN APPROPRIATION OF THE AFFECTIONS OF THE 

HUSBAND. This article agrees with the two preceding, because 
affections are of the will ; for affections which are merely de- 
rivations of the love ; form the will, and make and compose it ; 
but these affections with meg. are in the understanding, whereas 
with women they are in the will 

198. XIII. THIS FORMATION [ON THE PART OF THE "WIFE] 

18 EFFECTED BT A RECEPTION OF THE PROPAGATIONS OF THE 
8OTO OF THE HUSBAND, WITH THE DELIG-HT ARISING- FROM 
HER DE8IEE TO BE THE LOVE OF HER HUSBAND*S WISDOM. 

This coincides with what was explained above, n. 172, 173. 
therefore- any further explanation is needless, Conj ugial delight 

173 



198200 CONJUGIAL LOTE 

with wives arise solely from their desire to be one with tlieif 
husbands, as good is one with truth in the spiritual marriage* 
That conjugial love descends from this spiritual marriage, has 
been proved above in the chapter which treats particularly on 
that subject; hence it may be seen, as in an image, that the 
wife conjoins the man to herself, as good conjoins truth to itself; 
and that the man reciprocally conjoins himself to the wife, 
according to the reception of her love in himself, as truth reci- 
procally conjoins itself to good, according to the reception of good 
in itself ; and that thus the love of the wife forms itself by the 
wisdom of the husband, as good forms itself by truth ; for 
truth is the form of good. From these considerations it is also 
evident, that conjugial delights with the wife originate principally 
in her desiring to be one with the husband, consequently to be 
the love of her husband's wisdom ; for in such case she is made 
sensible of the delights of her own heat in the man's light, ac- 
cording to what was explained in Article IV., ri. 188. 

199. XIV. THUS A MAIDEN IS FORMED INTO A WIFE, 

AND A YOUTH INTO A HUSBAND. This flows as a consequence, 
from what has been said above in this and the foregoing chapter 
respecting the conjunction of married partners into one flesh. 
A maiden becomes or is made a wife, because in a wife there are 
principles taken out of the husband, and therefore supplemental, 
which were not previously in her as a maiden : a youth also be- 
comes or is made a husband, because in a husband there are 
principles taken out of the wife, which exalt his receptibility of 
love and wisdom,, and which were not previously in him as a 
youth : this is the case with those who are principled in love 
truly conjugial. That it is these who feel themselves a united 
man (homo)> and as it were one flesh, may be seen in the pre- 
ceding chapter, n. 178. From these considerations it is evident, 
that with females the maiden principle is changed into that of a 
wife, and with men the youthful principle is changed into that of 
a husband. That this is the case, was experimentally confirmed 
to me in the spiritual world, as follows : Some men asserted, 
that conjunction with a female before marriage is like con- 
junction with a wife after marriage. On hearing this, the wives 
were very indignant, and said: "There is no likeness at all 
in the two cases. The difference between them is like that be* 
tween what is fancied and what is real/* 1 Hereupon the men 
rejoined, "Are you not females as before?" To this the 
wives replied more sharply, " We are not females, but wives ; 
you are in fancied and not in real love ; you therefore talk fan- 
cifully." Then the men said, "If you are not females (femww) 
still you are women (mulieres) ;" and they replied, " In the first 
states of marriage we were women (mulieres); but now we are 
wives." 

800. XT. IN THE MARKIAGE OF ONE MAN WITH ONJ9 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 200 202 

WIFE, BETWEEN" WHOM THERE EXISTS LOVE TRULY CONJUGTAL, 
THE WIFE BECOMES MORE AND MORE A WIFE, AND THE HUS- 
BAND MORE AND MORE A HUSBAND. That love truly conjngial 
more and more conjoins two into one man (komo)^ may be seen 
above n. 178, 179 ; and as a wife becomes a wife from and accord- 
ing to conjunction with the husband, and in like manner the 
husband with the wife ; and as love truly conjugial endures to 
eternity, it follows, that the wife becomes more and more a wife* 
and the husband more and more a husband. The true reason ff 
this is, because in the marriage of love truly conjngial, each 
married partner becomes continually a more interior man ; for 
that love opens the interiors of their minds ; and as these are 
opened, a man becomes more and more a man (homo) : and to 
become more a man (homo} in the case of the wife is to become 
more a wife, and in the case of the husband to become more a 
husband. I have heard from the angels, that the wife becomes 
more and more a wife as the husband becomes more and more a 
husband, but not viee versa j because it rarely, if ever, happens, 
that a chaste wife is wanting in love to her husband, but that 
the husband is wanting in a return of love to his wife ; and that 
this return of love is wanting because he has no elevation of 
wisdom, which alone receives the love of the wife : respecting 
this wisdom see above n. 130, 163 165. These things however 
they said in regard to marriages on earth. 

201. XTI. THUS ALSO THEIR FORMS ARE SUCCESSIVELY 

PERFECTED AND ENNOBLED FROM WITHIN. The most perfect 

and noble human form results from the conjunction of two forms 
by marriage so as to become one form ; thus from two fleshes 
becoming one flesh, according to creation. That in such case 
the man's mind is elevated into superior light, and the wife's 
into superior heat, and that then they germinate, and bear 
flowers and fruits, like trees in the spring, may be seen above, 
n. 188, 189. That from the nobleness of this form are produced 
noble fruits, which in the heavens are spiritual, and on earth 
natural, will be seen in the following article. 

202, XVIL CHILDREN BORN OF PARENTS WHO ARE PRIN- 
CIPLED IN LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, DERIVE FROM THEM THK 
CONJUGIAL PRINCIPLE OF GOOD AND TRUTH, WHENCE THEY 
HAVE AN INCLINATION AND FACULTY, IF SONS, TO PERCEIVE 
TUB THINGS RELATING TO WISDOM, AND IF DAUGHTERS, TO 

LOVE THOSE THINGS WHICH WISDOM TEACHES. That children 
derive from their parents inclination to such things as had been 
objects of the love and life of the parents, is a truth most per* 
fectly agreeable to the testimony of history in general, and of 
experience in particular ; but that they do not derive or inheri 
from their parents the affections themselves, and thence the lives 
of those affections, but only inclinations and faculties thereto, 
has been shewn me by the wise in the spiritual world ; con* 

175 



202 204: CONJUGIAL LOVE 

cerning whom, see the two MEMORABLE RELATIONS above adduced, 
That children to the latest posterity, from Innate inclinations, if 
they are not modified, are led into affection^ thoughts, speech, 
and life, similar to those of their parents, Js clearly manifest 
from the Jews, who at this day are like their fathers in Egypt, 
in the wilderness, in the land of Canaan, and in the Lord's 
time ; and this likeness Is not confined to their minds only, hut 
extends to their countenances ; for who does not know a Jew by 
his look? The case is the same with the descendants of others : 
from which considerations^ may infall ibly be concluded, that chil- 
dren are born with inclinations to such things as their parents 
were inclined to. But it is of the divine providence., lest thought 
and act should follow inclination, that perverse inclinations may 
be corrected ; and also that a faculty has been implanted for this 
purpose, by virtue whereof parents and masters have the power 
of amending the morals of children, and children may afterwards, 
when they come to years of discretion, amend their own morals. 

203. We have said that children derive from their parents the 
conjngial principle of good and truth, because this is implanted 
from creation in the soul of every one ; for it is that which flows 
into every man from the Lord, and constitutes his human life. 
But this conjugial principle passes into derivatives from the soul 
even to the ultimates of the body. In its passage through these 
ultimates and those derivatives, it is changed by the man himself 
in various ways, and sometimes into the opposite, which is called 
the conjugial or connubial principle of what is evil and false. 
When this is the case, the mind is closed from beneath, and is 
sometimes twisted as a spire into the contrary ; but with some 
that principle is not closed, but remains half-open above, and 
with some open. The latter and the former conjugial principle 
is the source of those inclinations which children inherit from 
their parents, a son after one manner, and a daughter after 
another. The reason why such inclinations are derived from the 
conjugial principle, is, because, as was proved above, n. 65, con- 
jugial love is the foundation of all loves. 

20-3L The reason why children born of parents who are 
principled in love truly conjugial, derive inclinations and facul- 
ties, if a son, to perceive the things relating to wisdom, and if a 
daughter, to love the things which wisdom teaches, is, because 
the conjugial principle of good and truth is implanted from crea- 
tion in every soul, and also in the principles derived from the 
soul ; for it was shewn above,, that this conjugial principle fills 
the universe from first principles to last, ana from a man even to 
a worm ; and also that the faculty to open the inferior principles 
of the mind even to conjunction with its superior principles, 
which are in the light and heat of heaven, is also implanted in, 
every man from creation ; hence it is evident, that a superior 
suitableness and facility to conjoin good to truth, and truth to 
176 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 204 207 

jg^ood, and thus to grow wise, is inherited by those who are born 
from such a marriage ; consequently they have a superior suit- 
ableness and facility also to embrace the things relating to the 
church and heaven; for that conjngial love is conjoined with 
these things, has been frequently shewn above. From these 
considerations, reason may clearly discover the end for which th 
Lord the Creator has provided, and still provides, marriages of 
lovg truly conjugial. 

205. I have been informed by the angels, that those who 
lived in the most ancient times, live at this day in the heavens, 
in separate houses, families, and nations, as they had lived on 
eartfc, and that scarce any one of a house is wanting ; and this 
because they were principled in love truly conjugial ; and that 
hence their children inherited inclinations to the conjugial prin- 
ciple of g^ood and truth, and were easily initiated into it more 
and more interiorly by education received from their parents, and 
afterwards as from themselves, when they become capable of 
judging for themselves, were introduced into it by the Lord. 

206. XVIII. THE REASON OF THIS is BECAUSE THE SOUL 

OF THE OFFSPRING- IS FROM THE FATHER AND ITS CLOTHING 

FROM THE MOTHER. No wise man entertains a doubt that the 
soul is from the father ; it is also manifestly conspicuous from 
minds, and likewise from faces which are the types of minds, in 
descendants from fathers of families in a regular series ; for the 
father returns as in an image, if not in his sons, yet in his grand- 
sons and great grandsons ; and this because the soul constitutes 
a lean's (komo\ inmost principle, which may be covered and con- 
gealed by the offspring nearest in descent, but nevertheless it comes 
forth and manifests itself in the more remote issue. That the 
soul is from the father, and its clothing from the mother, may be 
illustrated by analogies in the vegetable kingdom. In this king- 
dom the earth or ground is the common mother, which in itself, 
as in a womb, receives and clothes seeds ; yea, as it were con- 
ceives^ bears, brings forth, and educates them, as a mother her 

offspring from the father. 

*# # # * * * # 

207. To the above I will add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS. 
FIRST. After some time I was looking towards the city Athens, 
of which mention was made in a former memorable relation, and 
I heard thence an unusual clamor. There was in it something 
of laughter, and in the laughter something of indignation, and 
in the indignation something of sadness; still however the 
clamor was not thereby dissonant, but consonant : because one 
tone was not together with the other, but one was within another. 
In the spiritual world a variety and commixture of affections is 
distinctly perceived in sound. I inquired from afar what was 
the matter. They said, " A messenger is arrived from the plaoa 
where the new comers from the Christian world first appear, 

12 m 



207 CONJTJGIAL LOVE 

bringing information of what he has heard there from three 
persons, that in the world whence they came they had believed 
with the generality, that the blessed and happy after death enjoy 
absolute rest from labor; and since administrations, offices, and 
employments, are labor, they enjoy rest ^from these: and 
as those three persons are now conducted hither by our emis- 
sary, and are at the gate waiting for admission, a clamor was 
made, and it was Deliberately resolved they should not be 
introduced into the Palladium on Parnassus, as the former wore, 
but into the great auditory, to communicate the news they 
brought from the Christian world : accordingly some deputies 
have been sent to introduce them in form." Being at time time 
myself in the spirit, and dista-nces with spirits being according to 
the states of their affections, and having at that time a desire to 
see and hear them, I seemed to myself to be present there, and 
saw them introduced, and heard what they safd. The seniors or 
wiser part of the audience sat at the sides of the auditory, and 
the rest in the midst; and before these was an elevated piece of 
ground. Hither the three strangers, with the messenger, were 
formally conducted by attendants, through the middle of the 
auditory. When silence was obtained, they were addressed by a 
kind of president of the assembly, and asked, " WHAT NEWS 
FROM THE EARTH ?" They replied, u There is a variety of news : 
but pray tell us what information you want." The president 
answered, "WHAT NEWS is THERE FROM THE EARTH CONCERN- 
ING OUR WORLD AND HEAVEN ?" They replied, " When we first 
came into this world, we were informed, that here and in heaven 
there are administrations, offices, employments, trades, studies, 
relating to all sciences and professions, together with wonderful 
mechanical arts ; and yet we believed that after our removal or 
translation from the natural world into the spiritual, we should 
enter upon an eternal rest from labor ; and what are employ- 
ments but labor?" To this the president replied, "By eternal 
rest from labor did you understand eternal inactivity, in which 
you should be continually sitting and laying down, with your 
bosoms and mouths open, attracting and inhaling delights and 
joys ?" " We conceived something of this sort/' said tlie three 
strangers smiling courteously. Then they were asked, " What 
connection have joys and delights and the happiness therico re- 
sulting, with a state of inactivity ?" By inactivity the mind fa 
enfeebled and contracted, instead of being strengthened and ex 
nanded ; or in other words, the man is reduced to a state of death, 
instead of being quickened into life. Suppose a person to sit still 
iu the most complete inactivity, with IMS lianas hanging down, 
his eyes fixed on the grouud, and withdrawn from all other ob- 
jects, and suppose him at the same time to be encompassed by 
an atmosphere of gladness, would not a lethargy seize both his 
head and body, and the vital expansion of Ins countenance 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 207 

would be contracted, and at length with relaxed fibres he would 
nod and totter, till he fell to the earth? What is it that keeps 
the whole bodily system in its due expansion and tension, but 
the tension of the mind ? and whence comes the tension of the 
mind but from administrations and employments, while the 
discharge of them is attended with delight 3 I will therefore tell 
you some news from heaven : in that world there are administra- 
tions, offices, judicial proceedings both in greater and lesser cases, 
also mechanical arts and employments." The strangers on hear- 
* Ij S of judicial proceedings in heaven, said, "To what purpose 
aresucn proceedings? are not all in heaven inspired and led by 
God, and in consequence thereof taught what is just and right ? 
what need then is there of judges !" "The president replied, u En 
this world we are instructed and learn what is good d true, also 
what is just and equitable, as in the natural world; and these 
things we learn, not immediately from God, but mediately 
through others; and every angel, like every man, thinks what is 
true, and does what is good, as from himself; and this, according 
to the state of the angel, is mixed and not pure : and moreover, 
there are among the angels some of a simple and some of a wise 
character; and it is the part of the wise to judge, when the sim- 
ple, from their simplicity and ignorance, are doubtful about what 
is just, or through mistake wander from it. But as you are as 
yet strangers in this world, if it be agreeable to you to accompany 
me into our city, we will shew you all that is contained therein." 
Then they quitted the auditory, and some of the elders also ac- 
companied them. They were introduced into a large library, 
which was divided into classes arranged according to the sciences. 
The three strangers, on seeing so many books, were astonished, 
and said, " There are books also in this world ! whence do you 
procure parchment and paper, pens and ink?" The elders re- 
plied, " we perceive that in the former world you believed that 
this world is empty and void, because it is spiritual ; and you be- 
lieved so because you had conceived an idea of what is spiritual 
abstracted from what is material ; and that which is so abstracted 
appeared to you as nothingness, thus as empty and void ; when 
nevertheless in this world there is a fulness of all things. Here 
all things are SUBSTANTIAL and not materiaf : and material things 
derivG^ their origin from things substantial. We who live here 
are spiritual men, because we are substantial and not material ; 
hence in this world we have all things that are in the natural 
world, in their perfection, even books and writings, and many 
other things which are not in the natural world." The three 
strangers, when they heard talk of things BUBSTAOTIAX, conceived 
that ft must be so, as well because they saw written books, as 
because they heard it asserted that material things originate in 
substantial. For their further confirmation in these particulars, 
they were conducted to the houses of the scribes, who were copy* 



2C7, 208 CQNJTOIAL LOVE 

Ing the writings of the wise ones of the city ; and they inspected 
the writings, and wondered to see them so beautiful and elegant. 
After this they were conducted to the museums, schools, and 
colleges, and to the places where they had their literary sports. 
Some of these were called the sports of the Heliconides, some of 
the Parnassides, some of the Athsenides, and some the sports of 
the maidens of the fountain. They were told that the latter were 
BO calledj because maidens signify affections of the sciences, and 
every one has intelligence according to his affection for the 
sciences : the sports so balled were spiritual exercises and trials of 
skill. Afterwards they were led about the city to see the rulers, 
administrators, and their officers, by whom they were conducted 
to see several wonderful works executed in a spiritual manner by 
the artificers. When they had taken a view of all these things, 
the president again conversed with them about the eternal rest 
from labor, into which the blessed and happy enter after death, 
and said, " Eternal rest is not inactivity ; lor inactivity occasions 
a thorough languor, dulness, stupor, and drowsiness of the mind 
and thence of the body ; and these things are death and not life, 
still less eternal life which the angels of heaven enjoy; therefore 
eternal rest is that which dispels sucli mischiefs, and causes a 
man to live; and it is this which elevates the mind ; consequently 
it is by some employment and work that the mind is excited, 
vivified, arid delighted ; which is affected according to the use, 
from which, in which ; and to which the mind is actuated. Hence 
the universal heaven is regarded by the Lord as containing uses ; 
and every angel is an angel according to use ; the delight of use 
carries him along, as a prosperous gale a ship, and causes him to 
be in eternal peace, ana the rest of peace. This is the moaning 
of eternal rest from labor. That an angel is alive according as 
his mind is directed to use, is evident from the consideration, 
that every one has conjugial love with its energy, ability and de- 
lights, according as he aevotes himself to the genuine use in 
which he is*'* When the three strangers were convinced that 
eternal rest is not inactivity, but the delight of some useful em- 
ployment, there came some maidens witli pieces of embroidery 
and net-work, wrought with their own hands, which they pre- 
sented to them. "When the novitiate spirits were gone, the 
maidens s&iag an ode, wherein they expressed with angelic melody 
the affection of useful works with the pleasures attending it 

208. THB SECOND MEMOBABLK DELATION* While I was 
meditating on. the arcana of conjugial love stored up with wives, 
there again appeared the GOLDEN SEOWEB described above ; and 
I recollected that it fell over a hall in the east where there lived 
three conjugiai loves, that is, three married pairs, who loved each 
ether tenderly. On seeing it, and as if invited by the sweetness 
of meditating on that love, I hastened towards it, and as I 
approached, the slower from golden became purple, afterwards 
180 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 208 

scarlet, and when I came near, it was sparkling like dew. 
I knocked at the door, and when it was opened, 1 said to the 
attendant, " Tell the husbands that the person who before came 
with an angel, is come again, and begs the favor of being ad- 
mitted into their company." Presently the attendant returned 
with a message of assent from the husbands, and I entered. The 
three husbands with their wives were together in an open gallery, 
and as I paid my respects to them, they returned the compliment. 
I then asked the wives, Whether the white dove in the window 
afterwards appeared f" They said, " Yes ; and to-day also ; and it 
likewise expanded its wings ; from which we concluded that you 
were near at hand, and were desirous of information respecting 
one other arcanum concerning corvjugial love." I inquired, 
" "Why do you say one arcanum ; when I came here to learn 
several P They replied, " They are arcana, and some of them 
transcend your wisdom to such a degree, that the understanding 
of your thought cannot comprehend them. You glory over us 
on. account of your wisdom ; but we do not glory over you on 
account of ours ; and yet ours is eminently distinguished above 
yours, because it enters your inclinations and affections, and sees, 
perceives, and is sensible of them. Yon know nothing at all of 
the inclinations and affections of your own love ; and yet these 
are the principles from and according to which your understand- 
ing thinks, consequently from and according to which you are 
wise; and yet wives are so well acquainted with those principles 
in their husbands, that they see them in their faces, and heat 
them from the tone of their voices in conversation, yea, they feel 
them on their breasts, arms, and cheeks : but we, from the zeal 
of our love for your happiness, and at the same time for our own, 
pretend not to know them ; and yet we govern them so pru- 
dently, that wherever the fancy, good pleasure, and will of our 
husbands lead, we follow by permitting and suffering it ; only 
bending its direction when it is possible, but in no case forcing 
it." I asked, " Whence have you this wisdom?" They replied, 
" It is implanted in us from creation and consequently from 
birth. Our husbands compare it to instinct ; but we say that it 
is of the divine providence, in order that the men may be ren- 
dered happy by their wives. We have heard from our iusbands, 
that the Lord wills that the husband (homo masoulus) should act 
freely according to reason ; and that on this account the Lord 
himself from within governs his freedom, so far as respects the 
inclinations and affections, and governs it from without by means 
of MB wife ; and that thus he forms a man with his wife into an 
angel of heaven ; and moreover love changes its essence, and does 
not become conjugial love, if it be compelled. But we will be 
more explicit on this subject : we are moved thereto, that is, to 
prudence in governing the inclinations and affections of our hus- 
bands, so that they may seem to themselves to act freely accord* 

181 



208, 209 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

ing to their reason, from this motive, because we a - ( //Lt. [ 
with their love ; and we love nothing more than that ti oy should 
be delighted with our delights, which, in case of their being 
lightly esteemed by our husbands, become insipid also to us. 
Having said this, one of the wives entered her chamber, and on 
her return said, " My dove still flutters its wings, which is a 
sign that we may make further disclosures." They then said, 
"We have observed various changes of the inclinations and affec- 
tions of the men ; as that they grow cold towards taeir wives, 
while the husbands entertain vain thoughts against the Lord and 
the church ; that they grow cold while they are conceited of their 
own intelligence ; that they grow cold while they regard with 
desire the wives of others ; that they grow cold whiUTtheir love 
is adverted to by their wives ; not to mention other occasions ; 
and that there are various degrees of their coldness : this we 
discover from a withdrawal of the sense from their eyes, ears, and 
bodies, on the presence of our senses. From these few observa- 
yations you may see, that we know better than the men whether 
it be well or ill with them ; if they are cold towards their wives 
it is ill with them, but if they are warm towards them, it is well ; 
therefore wives are continually devising means whereby the men 
may become warm and not cold towards them ; and these means 
they devise with a sagacity inscrutable to the men." As they 
said this, the dove was heard to make a sort of moaning ; and 
immediately the wives said, " This is a token to us that we have 
a wish to communicate greater arcana, but that it is not allow- 
able : probably you will reveal to the men what you have heard." 
I replied, u I intend to do so : what harm can come from it ?" 
Hereupon the wives talked together on the subject, and then 
said, " Keveal it, if ;you like, we are well aware of the power of 
persuasion which wives possess. They will say to their husbands, 
^The man is not in earnest; he tells idle tales: he is but joking 
from appearances, and from strange fancies usual with men. Do 
not believe him, but believe us : we know that you are loves, and 
we obediences. 3 Therefore you may reveal it if you like ; but 
etill the husbands will place no dependence on what comes from 
your lips, but on that which comes from the lips of their wives 
thev kiss." 



UNITERSALS RESPECTING MARRIAGER 

SSQ9. THERE are so many things relating to marriages that* 
if particularly treated of, they would swell this little work into 
a large volume : for we might treat particularly of the similitude 

182 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 209 

and dissimilitude subsisting among married partners; of the 
elevation of natural conjugial love into spiritual, and of their 
conjunction; of the increase of the one and the decrease o* 
the other; of the varieties and diversities of each; of the intelli- 
gence of wives; of the universal conjugial sphere proceeding 
.rora heaven, and^of its opposite from hell, and of their influx 
and reception ; with many other particulars, which, if individ- 
ually enlarged upon, would render this work so bulky as to tire 
the reader. For this reason, and to avoid useless prolixity, we 
will condense these particulars into UNIVERSAL RESPECTING 
MAKRIAG-ES. But these, like the foregoing subjects, must be 
considered distinctly as arranged under the following articles : 
[. The sense proper to oonjugial love is the sense of touch. IL 
With those who are in love truly conjugial, the faculty of grow- 
ing wise gradually increases : but with those who are not it de- 
creases, III. With those who are in love truly conjugial^ the 
happiness <jf dwelling together increases but with those who 
are not it decreases. IV. With those w/io are in love truly con* 
Jugial, conjunction of minds increases, and therewith friends hip / 
out with those who are not they both decrease. V. Those who 
are in love truly eonjugial, continually desire to "be one man 
(homo); fart those who are not desire to be two. VI. Those 
who are in love truly conjugial^ in marriage have respect to what 
is eternal / but with those who are not the case is reversed, 
YII. Cowjugial love resides with chaste wives / but still their love 
depends on the husbands. YIIL Wives love the bonds of mar- 
riage if the men do, IX. The intelligence of women is in itself 
moaest, elegant, pacific, yielding, soft., tender; but the intelligence 
of men is ^n itself grave, harsh, hard, daring, fond of licentious* 
ness. X. Wives are in no excitation as men are / but they haw 
a state of preparation for reception. XL Men have abundant 
store according to the love of propagating the truths of their 
wisdom, and to the love of doing uses. XII. Determination is m 
the good pleasure of the husband. XIII. The conjugial sphere 
jlowsfrom the Lord through heaven into everything in the uni* 
verse, even to its ultimates. XIY. This sphere is received by the 
female sex, and through that is transferred into the male sex; 
and not vice versa. XV. Where there is love truly conjugial, 
this sphere is received by the wife, and only through her by the 
husband. XYL Where there is love not conjugial, this sphere is 
received indeed by the wife, but not by the husband through her* 
XVII. Love truly conjugial may exist with one of the married 
partners, and not at the same time with the other. XVIII. 
JThere are various similitudes and dissimilitudes, both internal 
and external, with married partners. XIX. Various similitudes 
am be conjoined, but not with dissimilitudes. XX. The Lord 
provides similitudes for those who desire love fouly conjugial / 
and if not on earth, ne yet provides them m heaven. X2kL A 

183 



209 211 CONJDGIAL LOVE 

man (homo) according to the deficiency and loss of conjugial love } 
approaches to the nature of a beast. We proceed to the expla- 
nation of each article, 

210. I. THE SENSE PKOPEE TO CONJUGIAL LOVE is THK 
SENSE OF TOUCH. Every love has its own proper sense. The 
love of seeing, grounded in the love of understanding, has the 
sense of seeing; and the gratifications proper to it are the various 
kinds of symmetry and beauty. The love of hearing grounded 
in the love of hearkening to and obeying, has the sense of hear- 
ing ; and the gratifications proper to it are the various kinds of 
harmony* The love of knowing these things which float about 
fu the air, grounded in the love of perceiving, is the sense of 
smelling ; and the gratifications proper to it are the various kinds 
of fragrance. The love of self-nourishment, grounded in the 
love of imbibing goods, is the sense of tasting ; and the delights 
proper to it are the various kinds of delicate foods. The love of 
knowing objects, grounded in the love of circumspection and 
self-preservation, is the sense of touching, and the gratifications 
proper to it are the various kinds of titillation. The reason why 
the love of conjunction with a partner, grounded in the love of 
uniting good and truth, has the sense of touch proper to it, is, 
because this sense is common to all the senses, and hence borrows 
from them somewhat of support and nourishment That this 
love brings all the above-mentioned senses into communion with 
it, and appropriates their gratification, is well known. That tho 
sense of touch is devoted to conjugial love, and is proper to it, is 
evident from all its sports, and from the exaltation of its subtle- 
ties to the highest degree of what is exquisite. But the further 
consideration of this subject we leave to lovers. 

211. II. WITH THOSE WHO AEE IN LOVE TRULY OONJTT- 

GIAL, THE FACULTY OF GKOWITO "WISE INCREASES; BUT WITH 

THOSE WHO ABE NOT IT DECREASES, The faculty cf growing 
wise increases with those who are in love truly conjugial, be- 
cause this love appertains to married partners orx account of wis- 
dom, and according to it, as has been fully proved in the pre- 
ceding sections; also, because the sense of mat love is the touch, 
which is common to all the senses, and also is full of delights ; in 
consequence of which it opens the interiors of the mind* as it 
opens the interiors of the senses, and therewith the organical 
principles of tho whole body. Hence it follows, that those who 
are principled in that love, prefer nothing to growing wise ; fo 
a man grows wise in proportion as the interiors of his mind are 
opened ; because by such opening, the thoughts of the under- 
standing are elevated into superior light, and the affections of the 
will into superior heat ; and superior light is wisdom, and supe- 
rior heat is the love thereof. Spiritual delights conjoined to 
BHtural delights, which are the portion of those who are in love 
truly conjugial, constitute loveliness, and thence the faculty of 
184 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 211 214 

growing wise. Hence it is that the angels have conjugial love 
according to wisdom; and the increase of that love and at the 
same time of its delights is according to the increase of wisdom ; 
and spiritual offspring, which are produced from their mar- 
riages, are such things as are of wisdom from the father, and of 
love from the mother, which they love from a spiritual storge / 
which love unites with their conjugial lore, and continually ele- 
vates it, and joins them together. 

212. The contrary happens with those who are not in any 
conjugial love, from not having any love of wisdom. These 
enter the marriage state with no other end in view than lascivi- 
ousness, in which is also the love of growing insane ; for every 
end considered in itself is a love, and lasciviousness in its spi- 
ritual origin is Insanity. By insanity we mean a delirium in the 
mind occasioned by false principles ; and an eminent degree of 
delirium is occasioned by truths which are falsified until they 
are believed to be wisdom. That such persons are opposed to 
conjugial love, is confirmed or evinced by manifest proof in the 
spiritual world; where, on perceiving the first-scent of conju- 
gial love, they fly into caverns, and shut the doors ; and if these 
are opened, they rave like madmen in the world. 

213. Ill, WITH THOSE WHO ARE IN LOVE TRULY CONJU- 
GIAL, THE HAPPINESS OP DWELLING- TOGETHER INCREASES; BUT 
WITH THOSE WHO ARE NOT IT DECREASES. The happiness of 

dwelling together increases with those who are in love truly con- 
]ngial, because they mutually love each other with every sense. 
v lhe wife sees nothing more lovely than the husband, and the hus 
band nothing more lovely than the wife ; neither do they hear, 
smell, or touch any thing'more lovely ; hence the happiness they 
enjoy of living together in the same house, chamber, and bed. 
That this is the case, you that are husbands can assure your- 
selves from the first delights of marriage, which are in their 
fulness ; because at that time the wife is the only one of the 
sex that is loved. That the reverse is the case with those who 
are not in conjugial love, is well known. 

214. IV. WITH THOSE WHO ARE IN LOYE TRULY CONJUGIAL 

CONJUNCTION OF MINDS INCREASES, AND THEREWITH FRIEND- 
SHIP ; BUT WITH THOSE WHO ARE NOT, THEY BOTH DECREASE. 

That conjunction of minds increases with those who are in love 
truly conjugial, was proved in the chapter ON THE CONJUNCTION 
OF SOULS AND MINDS BY MARRIAGE, WHICH IS MEANT BY THK 
LORD'S WORDS, THAT THEY ARE NO LONGER TWO BUT ONE FLESH, 
eee n. 156* 191. But that conjunction increases as friendship 
unites with love ; because friendship is as it were the face and also 
the raiment of that love; for it not only joins itself to love aa 
raiment, "but also conjoins itself thereto as a face. Love preced* 
ing friendship Is like the love of the sex, which, after the mar- 
vow, takes its leave and departs : whereas love conjoined to 
' 185 



214216 OONJTOIAL LOVE 

friendship after the marriage vow, remains and is strengthened 
it likewise enters more interiorly into the breast, friendship intro 
ducing it, and making it truly conjugial. In this case the love 
makes its friendship also conjugial, which differs greatly from the 
friendship of every other love ; for it is fall ^ ThaUhe case is re- 
versed with those who are not principled in conjugal love, is 
well known. With these, the first friendship, which was insin- 
uated during the time of courtship, and afterwards during the 
period immediately succeeding marriage, recedes more and more 
From the interiors of the mind, and thence successively at length 
retires to the cuticles; and with those who think of separation, 
it entirely departs ; but with those who do not think of separa- 
tion, love remains in the externals, yet it is cold in the internals. 

215. V. THOSE WHO ARE IN LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, CON- 
TINUALLY DESIRE TO BE ONE MAN, BUT THOSE WHO ARE NOT 
IN CONJUGIAL LOVE, DESIRE TO BE TWO, Conjugial love 68- 

sentially consists in the desire of two to become one ; that is, in 
their desire that two lives may become one life. This desire is 
the perpetual conatus of that love, from which flow all its effects. 
That conatus is the very essence of motion, and that desire is the 
living- conatus appertaining to man, is confirmed by the re- 
searches of philosophers, and is also evident to such as take a 
view of the subject from refined reason. Hence it follows, that 
those who are in love truly conjugial, continually endeavour, 
that is, desire to be one man. That the contrary is the case 
with those who are not in conjugial love, they themselves very 
well know; for as they continually think themselves two from 
the disunion of their souls and minds, so they do not compre- 
hend 'what is meant by the Lord's words, u They are no longer 
two, T)ut one flesh:" Matt. xix. 6. 

216. VI. THOSE WHO ARE IN LOVE TRULY CONJUGIAL, IN 

MARRIAGE HAVE RESPECT TO WHAT IS ETERNAL; BUT WITH 

THOSB WHO ARE NOT THE OASE 18 REVERSED. TllOSO wllO are 

in love truly conjugial have respect to what is eternal, because 
in that love there is eternity ; and its eternity is grounded in this, 
that love with the wife, and wisdom with the husband, increases 
to eternity; and in the increase or progression the married 
partners enter more and more interiorly into the blessedness 01 
heaven, which their wisdom and its love have stored up together 
in themselves : if therefore the idea of what is eternal were to 
be plucked away, or by any casualty to escape from their minds, 
it would be as if they were cast down from heaven. "What is the 
state of conjugial partners in heaven, when the idea of what is 
eternal falls out of their minds, and the idea of what is temporal 
takes its place, was made evident to me from the following case. 
On a certain time, permission having been granted for the pur- 
pose, two married partners were present with me from heaven ; 
and at that instant tne idea of what is eternal respecting marriage 
186 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 216, 217 

was taken away from them by an idle disorderly spirit who was 
talking with craft and subtlety. Hereupon they began to bewail 
themselves, saying, that they could not live any longer, and that 
they felt such misery as they had never felt before. When this 
was perceived by their co-angels in heaven, the disorderly spirit 
was removed and cast down ; whereupon the idea of what is 
eternal instantly returned to them, and they were gladdened in 
heart, and most tenderly embraced each other. Besides this, 
I lave heard two married partners, who at one instant entertained 
an idea of what is eternal respecting their marriage, and the next 
an idea of what is temporal. This arose from their being inter- 
nally dissimilar. When they were in the idea of what is eternal, 
they were mutually glad ; but when in the idea of what is tem- 
poral, they; said, "There is no longer any marriage bet ween us;" 
and the wife, " I am no longer a wife, but a concubine ;" and 
the husband, "I am no longer a husband, but an adulterer;' 7 
wherefore while their internal dissimilitude was open to them, 
the man left the woman, and the woman the man : afterwards, 
however, as each had an idea of what is eternal respecting mar- 
riage, they were consociated with suitable partners. From these 
instances it may be clearly seen, that those who are in love truly 
conjugial have respect to what is eternal ; and if this idea escapes 
from their inmost thoughts, they are disunited as to conjugial 
love, though not at the same time as to friendship ; for friend- 
ship dwells in externals, but conjugial love in internals. The 
case is similar with marriages on earth, where married partners 
who tenderly love each other, think of what is eternal respecting 
the marri age-covenant, and not at all of its termination by death ; 
and if this should enter their thoughts, they are grieved ; never- 
theless they are cherished again by hope from the thought of 
its continuance after their decease. 

216.* VII. OOSVTUGHAL LOVE RESIDES WITH CHASTE WIVES; 
BUT STILL THEIR LOVE DEPENDS ON THE HUSBANDS. The rea 

son of this is, because wives are bora loves ; and hence it is 
innate to them to desire to be one with their husbands and 
from this thought of their will they continually feed their love ; 
wherefore to recede from the conatus of uniting themselves to 
their husbands, would be to recede from themselves : it is other- 
wise with the husbands, who are not born loves, but recipients 
of that love from their wives ; and on this account, so far as 
they receive it, so far the wives enter with their love ; but so 
far as they do not receive it, so far the wives stand aloof with 
their love, and wait in expectation. This is the case with chaste 
wives ; but it is otherwise with the unchaste. From these con- 
siderations it is evident, that conjugial love resides with the 
wives, but that their love depends on the husbands. 

217. Till, WIVES LOVE THE BONDS OF MARBIA&E n 
THE MEN BO. This follows from what was said in the foregoing 

187 



217 219 COSTJUGIAL LOVE 

article : moreover, wives naturally desire to be, and tc be called 
wives ; this being to them a name of respect and honor ; they 
therefore love the bonds of marriage. And as chaste wives desire, 
not in name only, but in reality, to be wives, and this is effected 
by a closer and closer binding with their husbands, therefore they 
love the bonds of marriage as establishing the marriage-covenant, 
and this so much the more as they are loved again by their hus- 
bands, or what is tantamount, as the men love those bonds. 

218. IX. THE INTELLIGENCE OF WOMEN is IN ITSELF 

MODEST, ELEGANT, PACIFIC, YIELDING, SOFT, TENDED; BUT TUB 
INTELLIGENCE OF MEN IN ITSELF IS GRAVE, HARSH, HAED, 

DARING, FOND OF LICENTIOUSNESS. That such is the character- 
istic distinction of the woman and the man, is very evident 
from the body, the face, the tone of voice, the conversation, the 
gesture, and the manners of each : from the BODY, in that there 
is more hardness in the skin and flesh of men, and more soft- 
ness in that of women ; from the FACE, in that it is harder, more 
fixed, harsher, of darker complexion, also bearded, thus less 
beautiful in men ; whereas in women it is softer, more yielding, 
more tender, of fairer complexion, and thence more beautiful ; 
from the TONE OF VOICE, in that it is deeper with men, and 
sweeter with women ; from jite CONVERSATION in that with men 
it is given to licentiousness and daring, but with women it is 
modest and pacific ; from the GESTURE, in that with men it is 
stronger and firmer, whereas with women it is more weak and 
feeble ; from the MANNERS, in that with men they arc more un- 
restrained, but with women more elegant. How far from the 
very cradle the genius of men differs from that of women, was 
discovered to me clearly from seeing a number of boys and girla 
met together, I saw them at times through a winclow in the 
street of: a great city, where more than twenty assembled every 
(lajr. The boys, agreeably to the disposition born with them, in 
thfeir pastimes were tumultuous, vociferous, apt to fight, to 
strike, and to throw stones at each other; whereas the girls sat 
peaceably at the doors of the houses, some playing with little 
children, some dressing dolls or working on bits of linen, some 
kissing each other ; and to my surprise, they still looked with 
satisfaction at the boys whose pastimes were so different from 
their own. Hence I could see plainly, that a man by birth is 
understanding, and a woman, love ; and also the quality of un* 
derstanding and of love in their principles; and thereby what 
would be the quality of a man's understanding without con* 
juction with female love, and afterwards with conjugial love. 

219. X* WIVES ABE usr HO EXCITATION AS MKN ABE ; BUT 

THEY HAVE A STATE OF PBEPABA1TON FOB EEOJEPTIOW. That 

men have semination and consequent excitation, and that women 
have not the latter because they have not the former, is evident ; 
but that women have a state of preparation for reception, and 

188 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 219, 220 

thus for conception, I relate from what has been told me; but 
what the nature and quality of this state with the women is, 1 
am not allowed to describe; besides, it is known to them alone, 
bat whether their love, while they are in that state, is in the 
enjoyment of its delighfc, or in what is undelightful, as some say, 
they have not made known. This only is generally known, that 
it is not allowed the husband to say to tne wife, that he is able and 
not willing : for thereby the state of reception is greatly hurt, 
which is prepared according to the state of the husband's ability. 

220. XL MEN HAVE ABUNDANT STOKE ACCORDING TO THE 
LOVE OF PROPAGATING THE TRUTHS OF WISDOM, AND TO THE 

LOVE OF DOING USES. This position is one of the arcana which 
were known to the ancients, and which are now lost. The 
ancients knew that everything which was done in the body is 
from a spiritual origin : as that from the will, which in itself is 
spiritual, actions flow ; that from the thought, which also is 
spiritual, speech flows ; also that natural sight is grounded in 
spiritual sight, which is that of the understanding ; natural hear- 
ing in spiritual hearing, which is attention of the understanding 
and at the same time accommodation of the will ; and natural 
smelling in spiritual smelling, which is perception ; and so forth : 
in like manner they saw that semination with men is from a 
spiritual origin. That it is from the truths of which the undei*- 
standing consists, they concluded from several deductions both of 
reason and of experience ; and they asserted, that nothing is re- 
ceived by males from the spiritual marriage, which is that of good 
and truth, and which flows into everything in the universe, but 
truth, and whatever has relation to truth ; and that this in its 
progress into the body is formed into seed ; and that hence it id, 
that seeds spiritually understoood are truths. As to formation, 
they asserted, that the masculine soul, as being intellectual, is 
thus truth ; for the intellectual principle is nothing else ; where- 
fore while the soul descends, truth also descends : that this is 
effected by this circumstance, that the soul, which is the inmost 
principle of every man (homo^ and every animal, and which in 
its essence is spiritual, from an implanted tendency to self-propa- 
gation, follows in the descent, and is desirous to procreate itself; 
and that when this is the case, the entire soul forms itself, and 
clothes itself, and becomes seed : and that this may be done 
thousands of times, because the soul is a spiritual substance, 
which is not a subject of extension but of impletion, and from 
winch no part can be taken away, but the whole may be pro; 
duced, without any loss thereof: hence it is, that it is as fully 
present in the smallest receptacles, which are seeds, as in its 
greatest receptacle, the body. Since therefore the principle of 
truth in the soul is the origin of seed, it follows, that men have 
abundant store according to their love of propagating the truths 
of their wisdom ; it is also according to their love of doing uses ; 

189 



2*23 222 CONJUGIAL LOTE 

because uses are the goods which truths produce. In the world 
also it is well known to some, that the industrious have abun- 
dant store, but not the idle. I inquired, "How is a feminine 
principle produced from a male soul ?" and I received for answer, 
that it was from intellectual good ; because this in its essence is 
truth : for the intellect can think that this is good, thus that it 
is true that it is good. It is otherwise with the will : this does 
not think what is good and true, but loves and does it. There- 
fore in the Word sons signify truths, and daughters goods, as 
may be seen above, n. 120 ; and seed signifies truth, us may be 
seen in the AI^OCALYPSE REVEALED, n. 565. 

221. XII. DETERMINATION is IN THE GOOD PLEASURE OF 
THE HUSBAND. This is, because with men there is the abundant 
store above mentioned ; and this varies with them according to 
the states of their minds and bodies : for the understanding is 
not so constant in its thoughts as the will is in its affections ; 
since it is sometimes carried upwards, sometimes downwards ; at 
one time it is in a serene and clear state in another in a turbulent 
and obscure one; sometimes it is employed on agreeable objects, 
sometimes on disagreeable ; and as tne mind, while it acts, is also 
in the body, it follows, that the body has similar states ; hence 
the husband at times recedes from conjugial love, and at times 
accedes to it, and the abundant store is removed in the one state, 
and restored in the other. These are the reasons why deter- 
mination at all times is to be left to the good pleasure of the 
husband ; hence also it is that wives, from a wisdom implanted 
iu them, never offer any admonition on such subjects. 

222. XIII. THE CONJUGIAL SPHERE FLOWS FJROM THE LOBP 

THROUGH HEAVEN INTO EVERYTHING- IN THE UNIVERSE, KV3BHST 

TO ITS ULTIMATE8- That love and wisdom, or, what is the same, 
good and truth, proceed from the Lord, was shewn above in a 
chapter on the subject Those two principles in a marriage 
proceed continually from the Lord, because they are himself, 
and from him are all things; and the things which proceed from 
him fill the universe, for unless this were the case, nothing 
which exists would subsist. There are several spheres whicli 
proceed from him ; the sphere of the conservation of the cre- 
ated universe ; the sphere of the defence of good and truth 
against evil and false, the sphere of reformation and regeneration, 
the sphere of innocence and peace, the sphere of mercy and grace, 
with several others ; but the universal of all is the conjngial 
sphere, because this also is the sphere of propagation, and thua 
the snpereminent sphere of the conservation of the created uni* 
verse by successive generations. That this conjugial sphere fills 
the universe, and pervades all things from first to last, IB evident 
from what has been shewn above, that there are marriages in the 
heavens, and the most perfect in the third or supreme heaven: 
and that besides taking place with men it takes place also with 
180 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 222 -224 

all the subjects of the animal kingdom in the earth, even down 
to worms ; and moreover with all the subjects of the vegetable 
kingdom, from olives and palms even to the smallest grasses. 
That this sphere is more universal than the sphere of heat and 
light, whicn proceeds from the sun of our world, may appear 
reasonable from this consideration, that it operates also in the 
absence of the sun's heat, as in winter, and in the absence of its 
light, as in the night, especially with men (homines). The 
ieasori why it so operates is, because it was from the sun cf the 
angelic heaven, and thence there is a constant equation of heat 
and light, that is, a conjunction of good and truth ; for it is in a 
continual spring. The changes of good and truth, or of its heat 
and light, are not variations thereof, like the variations on earth 
arising from changes of the heat and light proceeding from the 
natural sun ; but they arise from the recipient subjects. 

223. XIV. THIS SFIIEEB is KECEIVED BY THE FEMALE 

SEX, AND THROUGH THAT IS TBANSFEEBED TO THE MALE SEX 

There is not any conjngial love appertaining to the male sex, 
but it appertains solely to the female sex, and from this sex is 
transferred to the male: this I have seen evidenced by expe- 
rience ; concerning which see above, n. 161. A further proof of 
it is supplied from this consideration, that the male form is the 
intellectual form, and the female the voluntary ; and the intel- 
lectual form cannot grow warm with conjugial heat from itself, 
but from the conjunctive heat of some one, in whom it was 
implanted from creation; consequently it cannot receive that 
love except by the voluntary form of the woman adjoined to 
itself; because this also is a form of love. This same position 
might be further confirmed by the marriage of good arid truth; 
ana; to the natural man, by the marriage of the heart and lungs ; 
for the heart corresponds to love, and the lungs to understand- 
ing ; but as the generality of mankind are deficient in the know- 
ledge of these subjects, confirmation thereby would tend rathei 
to obscure than to illustrate. It is in consequence of the trans- 
ferrence of this sphere from the female sex into the male, that the 
mind is also inflamed solely from thinking about the sex ; that 
hence also comes propagative formation and thereby excitation, 
follows of course ; for unless heat is united to light on earth, 
nothing flourishes and is excited to cause fructification there. 

224. XV. WHERE THERE is LOVE TKTJLY CONJTHHAL, THIS 

SPHERE IS EEOEIVED BY THE WIFE, AND ONLY THBOtraH HER 

BY THE HUSBAND. That this sphere, with those who are in love 
truly conjugial, is received by th& husband only through the wife, 
is at this day an arcanum ; and yet in itself it is not an arcanum, 
because the bridegroom and new-married husband may know 
this; is he not affected conjugially by whatever proceeds from 
the bride and new-married wife, but not at that time by what 
proceeds from others of the sex ? The case is the same .with 

191 



224 227 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

those who live together in love truly conjugial. And since 
everyone, both man and woman, is encompassed by his own 
sphere of life, densely on the breast, and less densely on the 
back, it is manifest whence it is that husbands who are very fond 
of their wives, turn themselves to them, and in the clay-time 
regard them with complacency ; and on the other hand, why 
those who do not love their wives, turn themselves away from 
them, and in the day-time regard them with aversion. By the 
reception of the conjngial sphere by the husband only through 
the wife, love truly conjugial is known and distinguished from 
that which is spurious, false, and cold. 

225. XVI. WHEEE THEKE is LOVE NOT CONJUGIAL, THIS 

SPHERE IS RECEIVED INDEED BY THE WIFE, BUT NOT BY THE 

HUSBAND THROUGH HER, This conjugial sphere flowing into the 
universe is in its origin divine; in its progress in heaven with 
the angels it is celestial and spiritual ; with men it is natural, 
with beasts and birds animal, with worms merely corporeal, with 
vegetables it is void of life ; and moreover in all its subjects it in 
varied according to their forms. Now as this sphere is received 
immediately by the female sex, and mediately by the male, and 
as it is received according to forms, it follows, that this sphero, 
which in its origin is holy, may in the subjects be turned into 
what is not holy, yea may be even inverted into what is opposite. 
The sphere opposite to it is called meretricious with such women, 
and adulterous with such men ; and as such men and women are 
in hell, this sphere is from thence : but of this sphere there is 
also much variety, and hence there are several species of it ; and 
such a species is attracted and appropriated by a man Mr) as is 
agreeable to him, and as is conformable and correspondent with 
his peculiar temper and disposition. From these considerations 
it may appear, that the man who does not love his wife, receive* 
that sphere from some other source than from his wife; never- 
theless it is a fact, that it is also inspired by the wife, but with* 
out the husband's knowing it, and while he grows warm. 

226. XVIL LOVE TRULY OONJUGIAL MAY EXIST WITH ONB 

OF THE MARRIED PARTNERS, AND NOT AT THE SAME TIME WITH 

THE OTHER. For one may from the heart devote himself to 
chaste marriage, while the other knows not what chaste marriage 
is; one may love the things which are of the church, but tho 
other those which are of the world alone : as to their minds, one 
may be in heaven, the other in hell ; hence there may be con- 
iugial love with the one, and not with the other. The minds 
of such, since they are turned in a contrary direction, are 
inwardly in collision with each other; and if not outwardly, 
till, he that is not in conjugial love, regards his lawful consort 
as a tiresome old woman ; and so in other cases. 

227* XVIII. THERE AEE YAKIOUS SIMILITUDES AND ras- 

RBCILITUDES, BOTH INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL, WITH MAREIEB 

192 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 227 229 

PARTNERS It is well known, that between married partners 
there are similitudes and dissimilitudes, and that the external 
appear, bu f not the internal, except after some time of living 
together, to the married partners themselves, and by indications 
to others ; but it would be useless to mention each so that they 
might be known, since several pages might be filled with an 
account and description of their varieties. Similitudes may in 
part be deduced and concluded from the dissimilitudes on ac- 
count of which conjugial love is changed into cold ; of which we 
shall speak in the following chapter. Similitudes and dissimili* 
tudes in general originate from connate inclinations, varied by 
education, connections, and persuasions that have been imbibed. 

228. XIX. VABIOUS SIMILITUDES OAK BE CONJOINED, BUT 
NOT WITH DISSIMILITUDES. The varieties of similitudes are very 
numerous, and differ more or less from each other ; but still those 
which differ may in time be conjoined by various things, espe- 
cially by accommodations to desires, by mutual offices and civili- 
ties, by abstaining from what is unchaste, by the common love 
of infants and the care of children, but particularly by conformity 
in things relating to the church ; for things relating to the 
church effect a conjunction of similitudes differing interiorly, 
other things only exteriorly. But with dissimilitudes no con- 
junction can be effected, because they are antipathetical. 

229, XX. THE LORD PROVIDES SIMILITUDES FOR THOSE 

WHO DESIRE LOVE TRULY OONJUGIAL, AND IF NOT ON EARTH, 

HE YET PROVIDES THEM IN HEAVEN. The reason of this is, 
because all marriages of love truly conjugial are provided by the 
Lord. That they are from him, may be seen above, n. 130, 131 ; 
but in what manner they are provided in heaven, I have heard 
thus described by the angels : The divine providence of the Lord 
extends to everything, even to the minutest particulars, concern- 
ing marriages and in marriages, because all the delights of heaven, 
spring from the delights of conjugial love, as sweet waters from, 
the fountain-head ; and on this account it is provided that con- 
jugial pairs be born ; and that they be continually educated to 
their several marriages under the Lord's auspices, neither the 
boy nor the girl knowing anything of the matter ; and after a 
stated time, when they both become marriageable, they meet in 
some place as by chance, and see each other, and in this case 
they instantly know, as by a kind of instinct, that they are a pair, 
and by a kind of inward dictate think within themselves, the 
youth, that she is mine, and the maiden, that he is mine ; and 
when this thought has existed some time in the mind of each, 
they accost each other from a deliberate purpose, and betroth 
themselves. It is said, as by chance, by ir-stinct, and by dictate ; 
and the meaning is, by divine providence ; since, while the divine 
providence is, unknown, it has such an appearance ; for the Lord 
opens internal similitudes, so that they may see themselves. 

13 



230, 231 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

230. XXL A MAN (homo), ACCORDING- TO THK DEFIOTKNCT 

AND LOSS OF CONJtJGIAL LOVE, APPRO ACHES TO THE NATUKK OF 

A BEAST. The reason of this is, because so far as a man (homo) is 
in conjugial love, so far he is spiritual, and so far as he is spi- 
ritual, so far he is a man (homo); for a man is born to a life 
after death, and attains the possession thereof in consequence ot 
having in him a spiritual soul, and is capable of being elevated 
thereto by the faculty of his understanding ; if in this case his 
will, from the faculty also granted to it, is elevated at the same 
time, he lives after death the life of heaven. The contrary comes 
to pass, if he is in a love opposite to conjugial love ; for so far as 
he is in this opposite love, so far he is natural ; and a merely 
natural man is like a beast as to lusts and appetites, and to their 
delights ; with this difference only, that he nas the faculty of 
elevating his understanding into the light of wisdom, and also of 
elevating his will into the heat of celestial love. These faculties 
are never taken away from any man (homo) / therefore the 
merely natural man, although as to concupiscences and appetites 
and their delights, he is like a beast, still lives after death, but in 
a state corresponding to his past life. From these considerations 
it may appear that a man, according to the deficiency of conjugial 
love, approaches to the nature of a beast. This position may 
seem to be contradicted by the consideration, that there are a 
deficiency and loss of conjugial love with some who yet are men 
(homines) ; but the position is meant to be confined to those who 
make lignt of conjugial love from a principle of adulterous love, 
and who therefore are in such deficiency and loss. 

#**tttt*4t># 

231, To the above I shall add THREE MEMOEABLE RELA- 
TIONS. FIEST. I once heard loud exclamations, which issued 
from the hells, with a noise as if they bubbled up through water : 
one to the left hand, in these words, " O now JUST!" another to 
the right, " O HOW LEARNED 1" and a third from behind, " Jiow 
WISE! ' and as I was in doubt whether there are also in hell 
persons of justice, learning, and wisdom, I was impressed with a 
strong desire of seeing what was the real case; and a voice from 
heaven said to me, " You shall see and hear," I therefore in 
spirit went out of the house, and saw before me an opening, which 
I approached; and looked down ; and lo I there was a ladder, by 
which I descended ; and when I was down, I observed a level 
country set thick with shrubs, intermixed with thorns and 
nettles ; and on my asking, whether this was hell, I was told it 
was the lower earth next above hell. I then continued my course 
in a direction according to the exclamations in order ; first to 
those who exclaimed, u O HOW JUST I" where I saw a company 
consisting of such as in the world had been judges influenced by 
friendship and gifts ; then to the second exclamation, O HOW 
LEARNED!" where I saw a company of such as in the world had 

194 



&ND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 231 

been reasoners; and lastly to the third exclamation, "O HOW 
WISE!" where I saw a company such as in the world had been 
cnnfirraators. From these I returned to the first, where there 
were judges influenced by friendship and gifts, and who were 
proclaimed u Just" On one side I saw as it were an amphi- 
theatre built of brick, and covered with black slates ; and I was 
told that they called it a tribunal. There were three entrances 
to it on the north, and three on the west, but none on the south 
and east; a proof that their decisions were not those of justice, 
but were arbitrary determinations. In the middle of the'amphi- 
theatre there was a fire, into which the servants who attended 
threw torches of sulphur and pitch ; the light whereof, by its vibra- 
tions on the plastered walls, presented pictured images of birds 
of the evening and night; but both the fire and the vibrations 
of light thence issuing, together with the forms of the images 
thereby produced, were representations that in their decisions 
they could adorn the matter of any debate with colored dyes, 
and give it a form according to their own interest In about 
half an hour I saw some old men and youths in robes and cloaks, 
enter the amphitheatre, who, layjng aside their caps, took their 
seats at the tables, in order to sit m judgement. I heard and 
perceived with what cunning and ingenuity, under the impulse 
of prejudice in favor of their friends, they warped and inverted 
judgement so as to give it an appearance of justice, and this to 
such a degree, that they themselves saw what* was unjust as just, 
and on the other hand what was just as unjust Such persua- 
sions respecting the points to be decided upon, appeared from 
their countenances, and were heard from their manner of speak- 
ing. 1 then received illustration from heaven, from which I 
perceived how far each point was grounded in right or not ; and 
I saw how industriously they concealed what was unjust, and 
gave it a semblance of what was just; and how they selected 
some particular statute which favored their own side of the ques* 
tion, and by cunning reasonings warped the rest to the same side. 
After judgement was given, the decrees were conveyed to their 
clients, friends and favorers, who, to recompense them for their 
services, continued to shout, " O HOW JUST, O HOW JUST!" After 
this I conversed respecting them with the angels of heaven, and 
related to them some of the things I had seen and heard. The 
angels said to me, " Such judges appear to others to be endowed 
witn a most extraordinary acuteness of intellect ; when yet they 
do not at all see what is just and equitable. If you remove the 
prejudices of friendship in favor of particular persons, they sit 
mute in judgement like so many statues, and only say, ' I acqui* 
esce, and am entirely :>f your opinion on this point.* This 
happens because all their judgements are prejudices ; and preju- 
dice with partiality influences the case in question from begin- 
ning to end. Hence they see nothing but what is connected 

195 



.231, 232 CO^JUGIAX, LOVE 

with their friend's interest; and whatever is contrary thereto, 
they set aside ; or if they pay any attention to it, they involve it 
in intricate reasonings, as a spider wraps up its prey in a web, 
and make an end of it ; hence, unless they follow the web of 
their prejudice, they see nothing of what is right. They were 
examined whether they were able to see it, and it was discovered 
that they were not. That this is the case, will seem wonderful 
to the inhabitants of your world; but tell them it is a truth 
that has been investigated by the angels of heaven. As they see 
nothing of what is just, we in heaven regard them not as men 
but as monsters, wliose heads are constituted of things relating 
to friendship, their breasts of those relating to injustice, their 
feet of those which relate to confirmation, and the soles of the 
feet of those things which relate to justice, which they supplant 
and trample under foot, in case they are unfavorable to the 
interests of their friend. But of what quality they appear to us 
from heaven, you shall presently see; lor their end is at hand." 
And lol at that instant the ground was cleft asunder, and the 
tables fell one upon another, and they were swallowed up, toge- 
ther with the whole amphitheatre, and were cast into caverns, 
and imprisoned. It was then said to me, " Do you wish to see 
them where they now are?" And lo ! their faces appeared as of 
polished steel, their bodies from the neck to the loins as graven 
images of stone clothed with leopards' skins, and their feet like 
snakes : the law books too, which they had arranged in order on 
the tables, were changed into packs of cards : and now, instead 
of sitting in judgement, the office appointed to them is to pre- 
pare vermilion and mix it up into a paint, to bedaub the faces 
of harlots and thereby turn them into beauties. 

After seeing these things, I was desirous to visit the two 
other assemblies, one of which consisted of mere reasoners, and 
the other of mere confirmators; and it was said to me, " Stop 
awhile, and you shall have attendant angels from the society next 
above them; by these you will receive light from the Lord and 
will see what will surprise yon." 

282. THE SECOND MEMORABLE KELATIOH* After some time 
I heard again from the lower earth voices exclaiming as before, 
41 HOW LBAKNED 1 HOW wisB 1" I looked round to see what 
angels were present ; and lo 1 they were from the heaven imme- 
diately above those who cried out, " HOW LEAKNKD 1" and 1 
conversed with them respecting the cry, and they said, "Those 
learned ones are such as only reason whether a thing be so or not*> 
and seldom think that it is so; therefore, they are like winds 
which blow and pass away, like the bark about trees which 
are without sap, or like shells about almonds without a kernel, 
or like the outward rind about fruit without pulp ; for their 
minds are void of interior judgement, and are united only with 
the bodily senses ; therefore unless the senses themselves decide, 
196 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 232 

they can conclude nothing; in a word, they are merely senstialy 
and we call them RBASONKBS. We give them this name, because 
they never conclude anything, and make whatever they hear si 
matter of argument, and dispute whether it be so, with perpetual 
contradiction. They love nothing better than to attack essen- 
tial truths, and so to pull them in pieces as to make them a 
subject of dispute. These are those who believe themselves 
learned above the rest of the world." On hearing this account, 
1 entreated the angels to conduct me to them : so they led me 
to a cave, from which there was a flight of steps leading to the 
earth below. We descended and followed the shout, " O HOW 
LEABNED!" and lol there were some hundreds standing in one 
place, beating the ground with their feet. Being at first sur- 
prised at this sight, I inquired the reason of their standing in 
that manner and beating the ground with the soles of their feet, 
and said, "They may thus by their feet make holes in the floor." 
At this the angel smiled and said, "They appear to stand in this 
manner, because they never think on any subject that it is so, 
but only whether it is so, and dispute about it ; and when the 
thinking principle proceeds no further than this, they appear 
only to tread and trample on a single clod, and not to advance." 
Upon this I approached the assembly, and lo 1 they appeared to 
me to be good-looking men and well dressed ; but the angels 
eaid, " This is their appearance when viewed in their own light ; 
but if light from heaven flows in, their faces are changed, and so 
is their dress ; and so it came to pass : they then appeared with 
dark faces, and dressed in' black sackcloth ; but "when this light 
was withdrawn, they appeared as before. I presently entered 
into conversation with some of them, and said, "I heard the 
shout of a crowd about you, 'Ohow learned F may I be allowed 
therefore to have a little conversation with you on subjects of the 
highest learning?" they replied, "Mention any subject, and we 
will give you satisfaction." I then asked, " What must be the 
nature of that religion by which a man is saved !" They said, 
-We will divide this subject into several parts ; and we cannot 
answer it until we have concluded on its subdivisions. The first 
inquiry shall be, Whether religion be anything? the second 
Whether there be such a thing as salvation or not? the third, 
Whether one religion be more efficacious than another? the 
fourth, Whether there be a heaven and a hell? the fifth, Whe- 
ther there be eternal life after death? besides many more inqui- 
ries. Then I desired to know their opinion concerning the first 
article of inquiry, Whether religion be anything? They began 
to discuss the subject with abundance of arguments, whether 
there be any such thing as religion, and whether what is called 
religion be anything? 1 requested them to refer it to the assem- 
bly, and they did so ; and the general answer was, that the pro* 
position required so much investigation that it could not bo 

191 



232, 233 I JNJUGIAL LOVE 

finished within the evening. I then asked, " Can yon finish ii 
within the year?" and one of them said, " Not within a hundred 
years :" so I observed, "In the menu while you are without 
rel gion ;" and he replied, < Shall it not be first demonstrated 
whether there be such a tiling as religion, and whether what is 
called religion be anything? if there be such a thing, it must be 
also for the wise ; if there be no such thing, it mast be only for 
the vulgar. It is well known that religion is called a bond ; but 
it is asked, for whom? if it he only for the vulgar, it is not any- 
thing in itself; if it be likewise for the wise, it is something?' 
On hearing these arguments, I said to them, "There is no cha- 
racter you deserve less than that of being learned ; because all 
your thoughts are confined to the single inquiry, whether a thing 
be, and to canvass each side of the question. Who can become 
learned, unless he know something lor certain, and progressively 
advance into it, as a man in walking progressively advances from 
step to step, and thereby successively arrives at wisdom ! If you 
follow any other rule, you make no approach to truths, but 
remove them more and more out of sight. To reason only 
whether a thing be, is it not like reasoning about a cap or a 
shoe, whether they tit or not, before they are put on ? and what 
must be the consequence of such reasoning, but that you will 
not know whether anything exist, yea, whether there be any such 
thing us salvation, or eternal life after death ; whether one religion 
be more efficacious than another, and whether there be a heaven 
and a hell? On these subjects you cannot possibly think at all, 
so long as you halt at the first step, and beat the sand at setting 
out, instead of setting one foot before another and. going forward. 
Take heed to yourselves, lest your minds, standing thus without; 
in a state of indetermination, should inwardly harden and become 
statues of salt, and yourselves friends of Lot's wife." With these 
words I took my leave, and they being indignant threw stones 
after me ; and then they appeared to me like graven images of 
gtone, without any human reason in them. On my asking the 
angels concerning their lot, they said, " Their lot is, that they 
are cast down into the deep, into a wilderness, where they are 
forced to carry burdens ; and in this case, as they are no longer 
capable of rational conversation, they give themselves up to idle 

E rattle and talk, and appear at a distance like asses that are 
eavily laden.' 1 

233. THIS THIRD MEMORABLE RELATION. After this one of 
the angels said, u Follow me to the place where they exclaim, 
4 O HOW WISE !' and you shall see prodigies of men ; you shall 
Bee faces and bodies, which are the faces and bodies of a man, 
and yet they are not men." I said, "Are they beasts then P 
lie replied, "They are not beasts, but beast-men; for they are 
such as cannot at all see whether truth be truth or not, and yet 
they can make whatever they will to be truth. Such persona 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 233 

with us are called COOTIEMATORS." We followed the vocifera- 
tion, and came to the place ; and lo ! there was a company of 
men, and around them a crowd, and in the crowd some of noble 
blood, who, on hearing that they confirmed whatever they said, 
and favored themselves with such manifest consent, turned, and 
said, " HOW WISE !" But the angel said to me, " Let us not 
go to their, but call one out of the company." We called him 
and went aside with him, and conversed on various subjects ; and 
he confirmed every one of them, so that they appeared altogether 
as true; and we asked him, whether he could also confirm the 
contrary ? he said, " As well as the former." Then he spoke 
openly and from the heart, and said, " What is truth? Is there 
anything true in the nature of things, but what a man makes 
true? Advance any proposition you please, and I will make it 
to be true." Hereupon I said, "Make this true ; That faith is 
the all of the church. This he did so dexterously and cunningly, 
that the learned who were standing by admired and applauded 
him. I afterwards requested him to make it true. That charity 
is the all of the church; and he did so: and afterwards, That 
charity is nothing of the church : and he dressed up each side of 
the question, and adorned it so with appearances, that the by- 
standers looked at each other, and said, "Is not this a wise 
man?" But I said, "Do not you know that to live well is 
charity, and that to believe well is faith ? does not he that lives 
well also believe well ? and consequently, is not faith of charity, 
and charity of faith? do you not see that this is true?" fie 
replied, " I will make it true, and will then see." He did so, 
and said, "Now I see it ;" but presently he made the contrary 
to be true, and then said, " I also see that this is true." At this 
we smiled and said, " Are they not contraries ? how can two 
contraries appear true ?" To tnis he replied with indignation, 
"You are mistaken; each is true; since truth is nothing but 
what a man makes true." There was a certain person standing 
near, who in the world had been a legate of the first rank. He 
was surprised at this assertion, and said, " I acknowledge that in 
the world something like this method of reasoning prevails ; but 
still you are out of your senses* Try if you can make it to be 
true, that light is darkness, and darkness light." He replied, 
" I will easily do this. What are light and darkness but a 
stale of the eye? Is not light changed into shade when the 
eye comes out of sunshine, and also when it is kept intensely 
lixed on the sun ? Who does not know, that the state of tha 
eye in such a case is changed, and that in consequence light 
appears as shade ; and on the other hand, when the state 01 
the eye is restored, that shade appears as light? Does not 
au owl see the darkness of night as the light of day, and the 
light of day as the darkness of night, and also the sun itself as a 
opaque and dusky globe? If any man had the eyes of an owl, 



233 CONJTJGIAL LOYK 

which would be call light and which darkness? What then is 
light but the state of the eye? and if it be a state of the eye, is 
not light darkness, and darkness light? therefore each of the 
propositions is true." Afterwards the legate asked him to make 
this true. That a raven is white and not black ; and he replied, 
" I will do this also with ease; and he said^ "Take a needle or 
razor, and lay open the feathers or cjuills of a raven ; are they 
not white within ? Also remove the feathers and quills, and look 
at its skin ; is it not white? "What is the blackness then which 
envelops it but a shade, which ought not to determine the 
raven's color ? That blackness is merely a shade, I appeal to th& 
skilful in the science of optics, who will tell you, that if you . 
pound a black stone or glass into line powder, you will see that 
the powder is white." But the legate replied, " Does not the 
raven appear black to the sight?" The confirmator answered, 
u Will you, who are a man, think in any case from appearance? 
you may indeed say from appearance, that a crow is black, but 
you cannot think so ; as for example, you may speak from the 
appearance and say that the sun rises, advances to its meridian 
altitude, and sets; but, as you are a man, you cannot think so; 
because the sun stands unmoved and the earth only changes its 
position. The case is the same with the raven ; appearance is 
appearance; and say what you will, a raven is altogether and 
entirely white ; it grows white also as it grows old ; and this I 
have seen." We next requested him to tell us from his heart, 
whether he was in joke, or whether he really believed that 
nothing is true but what a man makes true ? and he replied, 
" I swear that I believe it." Afterwards the legate asked him, 
whether he could make it true that he was out of his senses ; and 
he said, " I can ; but I do not choose : who is not out of his 
senses ?" When the conversation was thus ended, this universal 
confirmator was sent to the angels, to be examined as to his true 
quality ; and the report they afterwards made was, that he did 
not possess even a single grain of understanding ; because all that 
is above the rational principle was closed in him, and that alone 
which is below was open. Above the rational principle is heavenly 
light, and below it is natural light ; and this light is such that 
It can confirm whatever it pleases; but if heavenly light docs 
not flow into natural light, a man does not see whether any thing 
true is true, and consequently neither does he see that any thing 
false is false. To see in either case is by virtue of heavenly light 
in natural light; and heavenly light is from the God of heaven, 
who is the Lord ; therefore this universal confirmator is not a 
man or a beast, but a beast-man. I questioned the angel con- 
cerning the lot of such persons, and whether they can be together 
with those who are alive, since every one has life from heavenly 
light, and from this light has understanding. He said, that 
such persons when they are alone, can neither think nor express 
MOO 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 233, 234 

tlieir thoughts, but stand mute like machines, and as in a deep 
Bleep ; but that they awake as soon as any sound strikes tlieir 
ears : and he added, that those become such, who are inmostly 
wicked ; into these no heavenly light can flow from above, but 
only somewhat spiritual through the world, whence they derive 
the faculty of confirming. As he said this, I heard a voice from 
the angels who had examined the confirmation, saying to me, 
u From what you have now heard form a general conclusion." 
I accordingly formed the following : u That intelligence does not 
consist in being able to confirm whatever a man pleases, but in 
being able to see that what is true is true, and what is false is 
false." After this I looked towards the company where the con- 
firrnators stood, and where the crowd about them shouted, " 
how wise /" and lo ! a dusky cloud covered them, and in the 
cloud were owls and bats on the wing ; and it was said to ine," 
" The owls and bats flying in the dusky cloud, are correspon- 
dences and consequent appearances of tlieir thoughts; because 
confirmations of falsities so as to make them appear like truths, 
are represented in this world under the forms of birds of night, 
whose eyes are inwardly illuminated by a false light, from which 
they see objects in the dark as if in the light. By such a false 
spiritual light are those influenced who confirm falses until they 
seem as truths, and afterwards are said and believed to be 
truths : all such see backwards, and not forwards. 



ON THE CAUSES OF COLDNESS, SEPARATION, AND DIVORCE 
IN MARRIAGES. 



:. IN treating here on the causes of coldness in mar- 
riages, we shall treat also at the same time on the causes of se- 
paration, and likewise of divorce, because they are connected ; 
for separations come from no other source than from coldnesses, 
which are successively inborn after marriage, or from causes dis- 
covered after marriage, from which also coldness springs; but 
divorces come from adulteries; for these are altogether opposite 
to marriages; and opposites induce coldness, if not in both 
parties, at least in one. This is the reason why the causes of 
coldness, separations, and divorces, are brought together into 
one chapter. But the coherence of the causes will be more 
clearly discerned from viewing them in the following series : 
I. There are spiritual heat and spiritual cold ; and spiritual 
heat is Iowe 9 and spiritual cold the privation thereof. EL Spir* 
itual cold in marriages is a disunion of souls and a disjunction 
of minds ^ whence come indifference^ discord^ contempt : , disdain^ 
and aversion / from which, in several cases^ at length comes sepa- 
ration a$ to bed, chamber, and house. III. There are several 
successive causes of cold, some internal, some external, and srm* 

201 



235 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

accidental. IV. Internal causes of cold are from religion. V. 

The first of these causes is the rejection of religion by each of the 
parties, VI. The second is, that one has religion and not the 
other, VII. The third is, that one is of one religion and the other 
of another. VIII. The fourth is the falsity of the religion 
imbibed. IX, With many, these are causes of internal cold, but 
not" at the same time of external. X. There are also several ex- 
ternal causes of cold / the first of which is dissimilitude of 'minds 
and manners, XI. The second is^ that conjugial love is Mlevcd 
to be the same as adulterous love, only that the latter is not 
a/ lowed by law, but the former is. XII. The third is, a driving 
for pre-eminence between married partners. XIII. The fourth is> 
a want of determination to any employment or business ^ whence 
comes wandering passion. XIV. The fifth is, inequality of ex- 
ternal rank and condition. XV. There are also causes of 
separation. XVI. The first of them is a vitiated state of mind. 
XVII. The second is a vitiated state of body. XVIII. The th ird 
is impotence before marriage. XI}. Adultery is the cause of 
divorce. XX. There are also several accidental causes of colct^* 
the first of which is, that enjoyment is common (or chea^f), be~ 
cause continually allowed. X'XL The second is, tkat living with 
a married partner \ from a covenant and compact^ seems to be 
forced and not free. XXII. The third is, affirmation on the part 
of the wife^ and her talking incessantly about love. XXIIL 
The fourth is, the man's continually thinking that his wife is 
willing; and on the other hand^ the wife's thinking that the man 
is not willing. XXIV. As cold is in the mind it is also in 
the body ; and according to the increase of that cold, the ex- 
ternals also of the body are closed. We proceed to an exphma* 
tion of each article. 

235. TJIKEE ARE SPIRITUAL HEAT AND SPIRITUAL COLD ; 

AND SPIRITUAL HEAT IS LOVE, AND SPIRITUAL COLO IS THE PIU* 

VATION THEREOF. Spiritual heat is from no other source than 
the sun of the spiritual world ; for there is in that world a suu 
proceeding from the Lord, who is in the midst of it; and as it 
is from the Lord, it is iu its essence pure love. This sun appears 
ti ery before the an gels, just as the sun of onr world appears before 
men. The reason of its appearing fiery is, because love is spir- 
itual fire. From that sun proceed both heat and light ; but as 
that sun is pure love, the heat thence derived in its essence is 
love, andjthe light thence derived in its essence is wisdom; hence 
it is manifest what is the source of spiritual heat, and that spir* 
itiial heat is love. But we will also briefly explain the source of 
spiritual cold. It is from the sun of the natural world, and its 
heat and light The sun of the natural world was created tliat 
its heat arid light might receive in them spiritual heat and light, 
and by means of the atmospheres might convey spiritual heat and 
light even to ultiinates in the earth, in order to produce effects 
202 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 235 237 

of ends, winch are of the Lord in his sun, and also to clothe spir- 
itual principles with suitab-e garments, that is, with materials, 
to operate ultimate ends in nature. These effects are produced 
when spiritual heat is joined to natural heat ; but the contrary 
comes to pass when natural heat is separated from spiritual heat, 
as is the case with those who love natural things, and reject 
spiritual : with such, spiritual heat becomes cold. The reason 
why these two loves, which from creation are in agreement, 
become thus opposite, is, because in such case the dominant heat 
becomes the servant, and vice versa; and to prevent this effect, 
spiritual heat, which from its lineage is lord, then recedes; and 
in those subjects, spiritual heat grows cold, because it becomes 
opposite. From these considerations it is manifest that spiritual 
cold is the privation of spiritual heat. In what is here said, by 
heat is meant love ; because that heat living in subjects is felt as 
love. I have heard in the spiritual world, that spirits merely 
natural grow intensely cold while they apply themselves to the 
side "of some angel who is in a state of love; and that the case ia 
similar in regard to the infernal spirits, while heat flows into 
them out of heaven; and that nevertheless among themselves, 
when the heat of heaven is removed from them, they are inflamed 
with great heat. 

236. II. SPIRITUAL COLD IN MARRIAGES is A DISUNION OH 

BQULS AND A DISJUNCTION OF MINDS, WHENCE COME INDIFFER- 
ENCE, DISCORD, CONTEMPT, DISDAIN, AND AVERSION; FROM 
WHICH, IN SEVERAL CASES, AT LENGTH COMES SEPARATION AS TO 

BED, CHAMBER, AND HOUSE. That these effects take place with 
married partners, while their primitive love is on the decline, 
and becomes cold, is too well known to need any comment The 
reason is ; because conjugial cold above all others resides in 
human minds ; for the essential conjugial principle is inscribed 
on the soul, to the end that a soul may be propagated from a 
soul, and the soul of the father into the offspring. Hence it is 
that this cold originates there, and successively goes downward 
into the principles thence derived, and infects them; and thus 
changes the joys and delights of the primitive love into what is 
Bad and un delightful. 

237, III. THERE ARE SEVERAL SUCCESSIVE CAUSES OF COLD, 

SOME INTERNAL, SOME EXTERNAL, AND SOME ACCIDENTAL. That 

there are several causes of cold in marriages, is known in^the 
world ; also that they arise from many external causes ; but it is 
aot known that the origins of the causes lie concealed in the 
inmost principles, and Siat from these they descend into the 
principles thence derived, until they appear in externals; in 
order therefore that it may be known that external causes are 
not causes in themselves, but derived from causes in themselves, 
which, as was said, are in inmost principles, we will first distri* 

203 



239 M2 CONJ0<HAL LOV1S 

bate the causes generally into internal and external, and after- 
wards will particularly examine them. 

238, IV. INTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD AEE FKOM RELIGION. 
That the very origin of conjngial love resides in the inmost prin- 
ciples of man, that is, in his soul, is demonstrable to every one 
from the following considerations alone; that the soul of the 
offspring is from the father, which is known from the similitude 
of inclinations and affections, and also from the general character 
of the countenance derived from the father and remaining with 
very remote posterity; also from the propagutive faculty im- 
planted in souls from creation; and moreover by what ia 
analogous thereto in the subjects of the vegetable kingdom, in 
that there lies hid in the inmost principles of germination the 
propagation of the seed itself, and thence of the whole, whether 
it be a tree, a shrub, or a plant. This propagative or plastic 
force in seeds in the latter Kingdom, and in souls in the other, 
is from no other source than the conjugial sphere, which is that 
of good and truth, and which perpetually emanates and flows in 
from the Lord the Creator and Supporter of the universe ; con- 
cerning which sphere, see above, n. 222 225 ; and from the 
endeavour of those two principles, good and truth, therein, to 
unite into a one. This conjugial endeavour remains implanted 
in souls, and conjngial love exists by derivation from it as its 
origin. That this same marriage, from which the above universal 
sphere is derived, constitutes the church with man, has been 
abundantly shewn above in the chapter oisr THE MABKIAQIS OF 
GOOD AND TRUTH, arid frequently elsewhere. Hence there is all 
the evidence of rational demonstration, that the origin of the 
church and of conjugial love are in one place of abode, and in a 
continual embrace ; but on this subject see further particulars 
above, n. 130, where it was proved, that conjugial love is accord- 
ing to the state of the church with man ; thus thut it is grounded 
in religion, because religion constitutes thia state. Man also 
was created with a capacity of becoming more and more interior, 
and thereby of being introduced or elevated nearer and nearer to 
that marriage, and thus into love truly conjugial, and this even 
so far as to perceive a state of its blessedness* That religion is 
the only means of introduction and elevation, appears clearly 
from what was said above, namely, that the origin of the church 
and of conjugial love are in the same place of abode, and in 
mutual embrace there, and that hence they must needs be con* 
joined. 

239. From what has been said above it follows, that where 
there is no religion, there is no conjugial love ; and that where 
there is no conjugial love, there is cold. That conjugial cold is 
the privation of that Irve, maybe seen above, n/ 235; con- 
sequently that conjugial cold is also a privation of a state of the 

204 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 239- -24-1 

church, or of religion. Sufficient; evidence of the truth of this 
may be deduced from the general ignorance that now prevails 
concerning love truly conjngial. In these times, who knows, 
and who is willing to acknowledge, and who will not be surprised 
to hear, that the origin of conjngial lore is deduced hence f But 
the only cause and source of this ignorance is, that, notwith- 
standing there is religion, still there are not the truths of 
religion ; and what is religion without truths ? That there is a 
want of the truths of religion, is fully shown in the APOCALYPSE 
REVEALED; see also the MEMORABLE RELATION, n. 566 of that 
work. 

240. V. OF INTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD THE FIRST 18 THB 
REJECTION" OF RELIGION BY EACH OF THE PARTIES. Those who 

reject the holy things of the church from the face to the hinder 
part of the head, or from the breast to the back, have not any 
good love; if any proceeds apparently from the body, still there 
is not any in the spirit "With such persons goods place them- 
selves on the outside of evils, and cover them, as raiment 
glittering with gold covers a putrid body. The evils which reside 
within, and are covered, are in general hatreds, and thence 
intestine combats against everything spiritual; for all things of 
the church which they reject, are in themselves spiritual ; and aa 
love truly conjugial is the fundamental love of all spiritual loven, 
as was shewn above, it is evident that interior hatred is contrary 
to it, and that the interior or real love with such is in favor of 
the opposite, which is the love of adultery ; therefore such per- 
sons, more than others, will be disposed to ridicule this truth, 
that every one has conjugial love according to the state of the 
church ; yea, they will possibly laugh at the very mention of love 
truly conjugial; but be it so; nevertheless they are to be par- 
doned, because it is as impossible for them to distinguish in 
thought between the marriage embrace and the adulterous, as it 
is for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. Such persons, 
as to conjngial love, are starved with cold more than others. If 
they keep to their married partners, it is only on account of some 
of the external causes mentioned above, n. 153, which withhold 
and bind them. Their interiors of the soul and thence of the 
mind are more and more closed, and in the body are stopped up ; 
and in this case even the love of the sex is thought little of, or 
becomes insanely lascivious in the interiors of the body, and 
thence in the lowest principles of their thought. It is these who 
are meant in the MEMORABLE RELATION, n, 79, which they may 
read if thev please. 

241. VI. OF INTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD THE SECOND IS, 
THAT ONE OF THB PARTIES HAS RELIGION AND NOT THB OTHER. 

The reason of this is, because the souls must of course disagree ; 
for the soul of one is open to the reception of conjugial love, 
the soul of the other is closed to it It is closed with the 

205 



211 -24:3 CONJTIGIAL LOVE 

party that has not religion, and it is open with the one that has j 
hence such persons cannot live together harmoniously; and when 
once conjugial love is banished, there ensues cold; but this is 
with the party that has no religion. This cold cannot be dissi- 
pated except by the reception of a religion agreeing with that of 
the other party, if it be true ; otherwise, with the party that has 
no religion, there ensues cold, which descends from the soul into 
the body, even to the cuticles ; in consequence of which he can 
no longer look his married partner directly in the face, or accost 
lier in a communion of respirations, or speak to her except in a 
subdued tone of voice, or touch her with the hand, and scarcely 
with the back ; not to mention the insanities which, proceeding 
from that cold, make their way into the thoughts, which they 
do not make known ; and this is the reason why such marriages 
dissolve of themselves. Moreover, it is well known, that an im- 
pious man thinks meanly of a married partner; and all who are 
without religion are impious. 

242. VII. OF INTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD THE THIRD IS, 
THAT ONE OF THE PARTIES IS OF ONE RELIGION AND THE 

OTHER OF ANOTHER. The reason of this is, because with such 
persons good cannot be conjoined with its corresponding truth ; 
for as was shewn above, the wife is the good of the husband's 
truth, and he is the truth of the wife's good. Hence of two 
souls there cannot be made one soul ; ancl hence the stream of 
that love is closed : and consequently a conjugial principle is 
entered upon, which has a lower place of abode, and which is 
that of good with another truth, or of truth with another good 
than its own, between which there cannot be any harmonious 
love : hence with the married partner that is in a false religion, 
there commences a cold, which grows more intense in proportion 
as he differs from the other party. On a certain time, as I was 
wandering through the streets of a great city inquiring for a 
*odging, I entered a house inhabited by married partners of a 
different religion ; being ignorant of this circumstance, the angels 
instantly accosted me, and said, " We cannot remain with you 
in that house ; for the married partners who dwell there differ in 
religion." This they perceived from the internal disunion of 
their souls. 

243. VIII. OF INTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD THE FOTJBTH IB, 

mo FALSITY OF THE RELIGION. This is, because falsity in spir- 
itual things either takes away religion or defiles it It takes it 
from those with whom genuine truths are falsified ; it defiles it, 
where there are indeed lalsities, but not genuine truths, which 
therefore could not be falsified. In the latter case there may te 
imputed goods with which those falses may be conjoined by 
applications from the Lord ; for these falses are like various dis- 
cordant tones, which by artful arrangements and combinations 
ave brought into harmony, and communicate to harmony its 

J 



ANB ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 243 215 

agreeableness : in fin's case some conjngial love is communicable; 
but with those who have falsified with themselves the genuine 
truths of the church, it is not communciable. The prevailing 
ignorance concerning love truly conjugial, or a negative doubting 
respecting the possibility of the existence of such love, is from 
persons of the latter description ; and from the same source also 
comes the wild imagination, in the minds of the generality, that 
adulteries are not evils in a religious point of view. 

244. IX. WITH MANY, THE ABOVE-MENTIONED ARE CAUSES 

OF INTERNAL COLD, BUT NOT AT THE SAME TIME OF EXTERNAL. If 

the causes above pointed out and confirmed, which are the cause? 
of internal cold, produced similar external cold, as many separa* 
tions would ensue as there are cases of internal cold, which are 
as many as there are marriages of those who are in a false or 
a different religion, or in no religion ; respecting whom we have 
already treated ; and yet it is well-known, that many such live 
together as if they mutually loved and were friendly to each 
other: but whence this originates, with those who are in inter- 
nal cold, will be shewn in the following chapter CONCERNING THE 

CAUSES OF APPARENT LOVE, FRIENDSHIP, AND FAVOR IN MARRIAGES. 

There are several causes which conjoin minds (animos), but still 
do not conjoin souls; among these are some of those mentioned 
above, n. 183 ; but still cold lies interiorly concealed, and makes 
itself continually observed and felt. With such married partners 
the affections depart from each other; but the thoughts, while 
they come forth into speech and behaviour, for the sake of 
apparent friendship and favor, are present ; therefore such per- 
sons know nothing of the pleasantness and delight, and still less 
of the satisfaction and blessedness of love truly conjugial, ac- 
counting them to be little else than fables. Theso are of the 
number of those who deduce the origin of conjugial love from 
the same causes with the nine companies of wise ones assembled 
from the several kingdoms of Europe; concerning whom see the 

MEMORABLE RELATION above, n. 103 114. 

245. It may be urged as an objection to what has been 
proved above, that still the soul is propagated from the father 
although it is not conjoined to the soul of the mother, yea, 
although cold residing therein causes separation; but the reason 
why souls or offspring are nevertheless propagated is, because 
the understanding of the man is not closed, but is capable of 
being elevated into the light into which the soul is ; but the love 
of his will is not elevated into the heat corresponding to the 
light there, except by the life, which makes him from natural 
become spiritual; hence it is, that the soul is still ^ procreated, 
but, in the descent, while it becomes seed, it is veiled over by 
such things as belong to his natural love ; from this springs here 
ditary evil, To these considerations I will add an arcanum from 
heaven, namely, that between the disjoined souls of two persons, 

20T 



215 247 CONJUGIAL LOTH 

especially of married partners, there is effected conjunction In a 
middle love ; otherwise there would be no conception with rm n 
(homines). Besides what is here said of conjngial cold, and ; ts 
place of abode in the supreme region of the mind, see the LAST 
MEMORABLE RELATION of this chapter, n. 270. 
" 246. X. THERE ARE ALSO SEVERAL EXTERNAL CAUSES OF 

COLD, THE FIRST OF WHICH IS DISSIMILITUDE OF MINDS AND 

MANNERS. There are both internal and external similitudes and 
dissimilitudes. The internal arise from no other source than 
religion ; for religion is implanted in souls, and by them is trans- 
mitted from parents to their offspring as the supreme inclination; 
for the soul of every man derives life from the marriage of good 
and truth, and from this marriage is the church; and as the 
church is various and different in the several parts of the world, 
therefore also the souls of all men are various and different; 
wherefore internal similitudes and dissimilitudes are from this 
source, and according to them the conjugial conjunctions of 
which we have been treating ; but external similitudes and dissi- 
militudes are not of the souls but of minds ; by minds (animos) wo 
mean the affections and thence the external inclinations, which 
are principally insinuated after birth by education, social inter- 
course, and consequent habits of life ; for it is usual to say, I 
have a mind to do this or that; which indicates an affection and 
inclination to it. Persuasions conceived respecting this or that 
kind of life also form those minds ; hence come inclinations to 
enter into marriage even with such as are unsuitable, and like- 
wise to refuse consent to marriage with such as are suitable; but 
still these marriages, after a certain time of living together, vary 
according to the similitudes and dissimilitudes contracted here- 
ditarily and also by education ; and dissimilitudes induce cold. 
So likewise dissimilitudes of manners ; as for example, an ill* 
mannered man or woman, joined with a well-bred one ; a neat 
man or woman, joined with a slovenly one ; a litigious man or 
woman, joined with one that is peaceably disposed; in a word, 
an immoral man or woman, joined with a moral one. Mar- 
riages of such dissimilitudes are not unlike the conjunctions of 
different species of animals with each other, as of sheep and 
goats, of stags arid mules, of turkeys and geese, of sparrows and 
the nobler kind of birds, yea, as of dogs and cats, which from 
their dissimilitudes do not consociate with each other, but in 
the human kind these dissimilitudes are indicated not by faces, 
but by habits of life ; wherefore external colds are from this 
source. 

247. XI. OF EXTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD THE SECOND IS, 
THAT OONJUQ-IAL LOVE IS BELIEVED TO BE THE SAME A8 ADULTS 
ROUS LOVE, ONLY THAT THE LATTER IS NOT ALLOWED BY LAW, BUI 

THE FORMER is. That this is a source of cold, is obvious to rea- 
son, while it is considered that adulterous love is diametrically 

20$ 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS, 247249 

opposite to conjugial love; wherefore when It is believed that 
conjugial love is the same as adulterous, they both become alike 
in idea ; and in such case a wife is regarded as a harlot, and 
marriage as uncleanness ; the man himself also is an adulterer, 
if not in body, still in spirit. That hence ensue contempt, dis- 
dain, and aversion, between the man and his woman, and there- 
by intense cold, is an unavoidable consequence ; for nothing 
Btores up in itself conjugial cold more than adulterous love ; and 
as adulterous love also passes into such cold, it may not unde- 
servedly be called essential conjugial cold. 

248. XII. OF EXTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD THE THIRD IS, A 
STEWING FOE FEE-EMINENCE BETWEEN MARRIED PARTNERS. 

This is, because conjugial love principally respects the union of 
wills, and the freedom of decision thence arising ; both which are 
ejected from the married state by a striving for pre-eminence or 
superiority ; for this divides and tears wills into pieces, and 
changes the freedom of decision into servitude. During the 
influence of such striving, the spirit of one of the parties medi- 
tates violence against the other ; if in such case their minds were 
laid open and viewed by spiritual sight, they would appear like 
two boxers engaged in combat, and regarding each other with 
hatred and favor alternately ; with hatred while in the vehemence 
of striving, and with favor while in the hope of dominion, and 
while under the influence of lust. After one has obtained the 
victory over the other, this contention is withdrawn from the 
externals, and betakes itself into the internals of the mind, and 
there abides with its restlessness stored up and concealed. Hence 
cold ensues both to the subdued party or servant, and to the 
victor or dominant party. The reason why the latter also suffers 
cold is, because conjugial love no longer exists with them, and 
the privation of this love is cold ; see n. 235. In the place of 
conjugial love succeeds heat derived from pre-eminence ; but this 
heat is utterly discordant with conjugial heat, yet it can exteriorly 
resemble it by means of lust. After a tacit agreement between 
the parties, it appears as if conjugial love was made friendship ; 
but the difference between conjugial and servile friendship in 
marriages, is like that between light and shade, between a living 
lire and an ignis fatuus, yea, like that between a well-condi- 
tioned man and one consisting only of bone and skin. 

249. XIII. OF EXTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD THE FOURTH IS, 
A WANT OF DETERMINATION TO ANT EMPLOYMENT OR BUSINESS, 

WHENCE COMES WANDERING PASSION, Man (homo) was created 
for use, because use is the continent of good and truth, from the 
marriage of which proceeds creation, and also conjugial love, as 
was shewn above. By employment and business we mean every 
application to uses ; while therefore a man is in any employment 
and business, or in any use, in such case his mind is limited and 
circumscribed as in a circle, within which it is successively ar- 

14 , 209 



250 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

ranged into a form truly human, from which as from a house he 
Bees various concupiscences out of himself, and by sound reason 
within exterminates them ; consequently also he exterminates the 
wild insanities of adulterous lust ; hence it is that conjugial heat 
remains better and longer with such than with others. The 
reverse happens with those who give themselves up to sloth and 
ease ; in such case the mind is unlimited and undetermined, and 
hence the man (homo) admits into the whole of it everything 
vain and ludicrous which flows in from the world and the body, 
and leads to the love thereof; that in this case conjngial love 
also is driven into banishment, is evident ; for in consequence 
of sloth and ease tne mind grows stupid and the body torpid, and 
the whole man becomes insensible to every vital love, especially 
to conjugial love, from which as from a fountain issue the acti- 
vities and alacrities of life* Conjugial cold with such is different 
from what it is with others ; it is indeed the privation of conjugial 
love, but arising from defect. 

250. XIV. OF EXTERNAL CAUSES OF COLD THE FIFTH 18, 
INEQUALITY OF EXTERNAL BANK AND CONDITION. There are 

several inequalities of rank and condition, which while parties 
are living together put an end to the conjngial love which com- 
menced before marriage ; but they may all be referred to inequali- 
ties as to age, station, and wealth. That unequal ages induce 
cold in marriage, as in the case of a lad with an old woman, and 
of a young gin with a decrepit old man, needs no proof. That 
inequality of station has a similar effect, as in the marriage of a 
prince with a servant maid, or of an illustrious matron with a 
servant man, is also acknowledged without further proof. That 
the case is the same in regard to wealth, unless a similitude of 
minds and manners, and an application of one party to the incli- 
nations and native desires of the other, consociate them, is evi- 
dent But in all such cases, the compliance of one party on 
account of the pre-eminence of station and condition of the other, 
effects only a servile and frigid conjunction; for the conjugial 
principle is not of the spirit and heart, but only nominal and of 
the countenance ; in consequence of which the inferior party ia 
given to boasting, and the superior blushes with shame. But in 
the heavens there is no inequality of age, station, or wealth ; in 
regard to age, all there are in the flower of their youth, and 
continue so into eternity ; in regard to station, they all respect 
others according to the uses which they perform. The more 
eminent in condition respect inferiors as brethren, neither do 
they prefer station to the excellence of use, but the excellence 
of use to station ; also when maidens are given in marriage, they 
do not know from what ancestors they are descended ; for no 
one in heaven knows his earthly father, but the Lord is tlie 
Father of all. The case is the same in regard to wealth, which i 
heaven is the faculty of growing wise, according to which a sut- 
210 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 250 253 

ficiency of wealth is given. How marriages are there entered 
into, may be seen above, n. 229. 

251. XV. THERE AKE ALSO CAUSES OF SEPARATION. There 
are separations from the bed and also from the house. There 
are several causes of such separations; but we are here treating 
of legitimate causes. As the causes of separation coincide with 
the causes of concubinage, which are treated of in the latter part 
of this work in their own chapter, the reader is referred thereto 
that he may see the causes in their order. The legitimate 
causes of separation are the following. 

252. XVI. THE FIRST CAUSE OF LEGITIMATE SEPARATION is 
A VITIATED STATE OF MIND. The reason of this is, because 
conjugial love is a conjunction of minds ; if therefore the mind 
of one of the parties takes a direction different from that of the 
other, such conjunction is dissolved, and with the conjunction 
the love vanishes. The states of vitiation of the mind which 
cause separation, may appear from an enumeration of them ; they 
are for the most part, the following: madness, frenzy, furious 
wildness, actual foolishness and idiocy, loss of memory, violent 
hysterics, extreme silliness so as to admit of no perception of 
good and truth, excessive stubbornness in refusing to obey what 
is just and equitable ; excessive pleasure in talkativeness and con- 
versing only on insignificant and trifling subjects ; an unbridled 
desire to publish family secrets, also to quarrel, to strike, to take 
revenge, to do evil, to steal, to tell lies, to deceive, to blaspheme ; 
carelessness about the children, intemperance, luxury, excessive 
prodigality, drunkenness, uncleanness, immodesty, application to 
magic and witchcraft, impiety, with several other causes. By 
legitimate causes we do not here mean judicial causes, but such 
as are legitimate in regard to the other married partner ; separa- 
tion from the house also is seldom ordained in a court of justice. 

253. XVII. THE SECOND CAUSE OF LEGITIMATE SEPARA- 
TION is A VITIATED STATE OF BODY. By vitiated states of body 
we do not mean accidental diseases, which happen to either of 
the married partners during their marriage, and from which they 
recover ; but we mean inherent diseases, which are permanent. 
The science of pathology teaches what these are. They are 
manifold, such as diseases whereby the whole body is so far 
infected that the contagion may prove fatal ; of this nature are 
malignant and pestilential fevers, leprosies, the venereal disease, 
gangrenes, cancers, and the like ; also diseases whereby the 
whole body is so far weighed down, as to admit of no consocia- 
bility, and from which exhale dangerous effluvia and noxious 
vapors, whether from the surface of the body, or from its inward 
parts, in particular from the stomach and lungs ; from the sur- 
face of the body proceed malignant pocks, warts, pustules, 
scorbutic phthisic, virulent scab, especially if the face be defiled 
therebv: from the stomach proceed 1 foul, stinking, rani? &u4 

211 



258 256 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

crude eructations : from the lungs, filthy and putrid exhalations, 
arising from imposthumes, ulcers, abcesses, or from vitiated 
blood or lymph therein. Besides these there are also various 
other diseases, as lipothamia, which is a total faintness of body 
and defect of strength ; paralysis, which is a loosing and relaxa- 
tion of the membranes and ligaments which serve for motion ; 
certain chronic diseases, arising from a loss of the sensibility 
and elasticity of the nerves, or from too great a thickness; 
tenacity, and acrimony of the humors ; epilepsy ; fixed weak- 
ness arising from apoplexy ; certain phthisical complaints, where- 
by the body is wasted ; the cholic, cseliac affection, rupture, and 
other like diseases. 

254. XVIII. THE THIRD CAUSE OF LEGITIMATE SEPARA- 
TION is IMPOTENCE BEFOEE MARRIAGE. The reason why this 
is a cause of separation is, because the end of marriage is the 
procreation of children, which cannot take place where this 
cause of separation operates ; and as this is foreknown by the 
parties, they are deliberately deprived of the hope of it, which 
hope nevertheless nourishes and strengthens their conjngial love. 

255. XIX. ADULTERY is THE CAUSE OF DIVORCE. There 
are several reasons for this, which are discernible in rational 
light, and yet at this day they are concealed. From rational 
light it may be seen that marriages are holy and adulteries pro- 
fane ; and thus that marriages and adulteries are diametrically 
opposite to each other ; and that when opposites act upon each 
other, one destroys the other even to the last spark of its life. 
This is the case with conjugial love, when a married person 
commits adultery from a confirmed principle, and thus from a 
deliberate purpose. With those who know anything of heaven 
and hell, these things are more clearly discernible by the light 
of reason : for they know that marriages are in and from heaven, 
and that adulteries are in and from hell, and that these two 
cannot be conjoined, as heaven cannot be conjoined with hell, 
and that instantly, if they are conjoined with man (homo)) 
heaven recedes, and hell enters. Hence then it is, that adultery 
is the cause of divorce ; wherefore the Lord saith, that u who&o 
ever shall put away his wife, except for whoredom, and shall 
marry another, committeth adultery" Matt. xix. 9. He saith, 
if, except for whoredom, he shall put away his wife, and marry 
another, he committeth adultery ; because putting away for this 
cause is a plenary separation of minds, which is called divorce; 
whereas other kinds of putting away, grounded in their parti- 
cular causes are separations, of which we have just treated; 
after these, if another wife is married, adultery is committed ; 
but not so after a divorce. 

256. XX. THEKE ARE ALSO SEVERAL ACCIDENTAL CAUSES 

OF COLD ; THE FIRST OF WHICH IS, THAT ENJOYMENT IS COM- 
MON (OR CHEAP), BECAUSE CONTINUALLY ALLOWED. The reason 
312 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 256, 257 

why this consideration is an accidental cause of cold is, because 
it exists with those who think lasciviously respecting marriage 
and a wife, but not with those who think holily respecting mar- 
riage, and securely respecting a wife. That from being common 
(or cheap) in consequence of being continually allowed, even 
joys become indifferent, and also tiresome, is evident from the 
case of pastimes and public shows, musical entertainments, 
dancing, feasting, and the like, which in themselves are agree- 
able, because vivifying. The case is the same with the intimacy 
and connection between married partners, especially between 
those who have not removed the unchaste love of the sex from 
the love which they bear to each other ; and when they think ot 
enjoyment's being common (or cheap) in consequence of being 
continually allowed, they think vainly in the absence of the 
faculty of enjoyment. That this consideration is to such persons 
a cause of cold is self-evident. It is called accidental, because 
it joins inward cold as a cause, and ranks on its side as a reason. 
To remove the cold arising from this pircumstance, it is usual 
with wives, from the prudence implanted in them, to offer re- 
sistance to what is allowable. But the case is altogether other- 
wise with those who think chastely respecting wives ; wherefore 
with the angels the consideration of enjoyment's being common 
in consequence of being continually allowed, is the very delight 
of their souls, and contains their conjugial love; for they are 
continually in the delight of that love, and in its ultimates ac- 
cording to the presence of their minds uninterrupted by cares, 
thus from the decisions of the judgement of the husbands. 

257. XXI. OF ACCIDENTAL CAUSES OF COLD THE SECOND 18, 
THAT LIVING- WITH A MARRIED PAETNEE, FEOM A COVENANT AND 

CONTRACT, SEEMS FOECED AND NOT FEEE. This cause operates 
only with those with whom conjugial love in the inmost princi- 
ples is cold ; and since it unites with internal cold, it becomes 
an additional or accidental cause. With such persons, extra- 
conjngial love, arising from consent and the favor thereof, is 
interiorly in heat ; for the cold of the one is the heat of the 
other ; which, if it is not sensibly felt, is still within, yea, in 
the midst of cold ; and unless it was thus also within, there 
would be no reparation. This heat is what constitutes the force 
or compulsion, which is increased in proportion as, by one of the 
parties, the covenant grounded in agreement and the contract 
grounded in what is just, are regarded as bonds not to be violated ; 
it is otherwise if those bonds are loosed by each of the parties. 
The case is reversed with those who have rejected extra-coniugiai 
love as detestable, and think of conjugial love as of wnat is 
heavenl v and heaven ; and the more so if they perceive it to be 
so : with such that covenant with its articles of agreement, and 
that contract with its sanctions, are inscribed on their hearts, 
and are continually being inscribed thereon more and more. In 

213 



257260 ONJUGIAL LOVE 

this case the bond of that love is neither secured by a covenant 
agreed upon, nor by a law enacted ; but both covenant and law 
are from creation implanted in the love itself, which influences 
the parties; from the latter [namely, the covenant and the law 
implanted from creation in the love itself] are derived the former 
[namely, the covenant and law] in the world, but not vice versa. 
Hence, whatever relates to that love is felt as free ; neither is 
there any freedom but what is of los r e : and I have heard from 
the angels, that love truly conjugial is most free, because it is 
the love of loves. 

258. XXII. OF ACCIDENTAL CAUSES OF COLD THE THIRD 
IS, AFFIRMATION ON" THE PART OF THE WIFE, AND HER TALKING 

INCESSANTLY ABOUT LOVE. With the angels in heaven there is 
no refusal and repugnance on the part of the wives, as there is 
with some wives on earth : with the angjels in heaven also the 
wives converse about love, and are not silent as some wives on 
earth ; but the causes of these differences I am not allowed to de- 
clare, because it would be unbecoming ; nevertheless they are de- 
clared in four MEMORABLE RELATIONS at the close of the chapters, 
by the angels' wives, who freely speak of them to their husbands, 
by the three in the hall over which there was a golden shower, 
and by the seven who were sitting in a rosary. These memora- 
ble relations are adduced, to the end that every thing may be 
explained that relates to conjugial love, which is the subject 
here treated of both in general and in particular. 

259. XXIII. OF ACCIDENTAL CAUSES OF COLD THE FOURTH 
IS, THE MAN'S CONTINUALLY THINKING- THAT HIS WIFE IS WILLING J 
AND ON THE OTHER HAND THE WIFfi's THINKING- THAT THE MAN 

is NOT WILLING. That the latter circumstance is a cause of love's 
ceasing with wives, and the former a cause of cold with men, is 
too obvious to need any comment. For that the man who thinks 
that his wife, when in his sight by day, and when lying at his 
side by night, is desirous or willing, should grow cold to the 
extremities, and on the other hand that the wife, who thinks 
that the man is able and not willing, should lose her love, are 
circumstances among many others well known to husbands who 
have considered the arcana relating to conjugial love. These 
circumstances are adduced also, to the end that this work may 
oe perfected, and THE CONJUGIAL LOVE AND ITS CHASTE i BLIGHT*} 
may be completed. 

260. XXIV. AS COLD 18 IN THE MIND IT IS ALSO IN" THE 
BODY J AND ACCORDING TO THE INCREASE OF THAT COLD, THK 
EXTERNALS ALSO OF THE BODY ARE CLOSED. It IS believed at 

the present day that the mind of man (homo) is in the head, 
and nothing ol it in the body, when yet the soul and the mind 
are both in the head and in the body ;" for the soul and the mind 
are the man (homo}) since both constitute the spirit which lives 
after death ; and that this spirit is in a perfect human, form, has 
214 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 260, 261 

been fully shewn in the treatises we have published. Hence, a8 
soon as a man thinks anything, he can in an instant utter it by 
means of his bodily mouth, and at the same time represent it by 
gesture ; and as soon as he wills anything, he can in an instant 
bring it into act and effect by his bodily members: which could 
not be the case unless the soul and the mind were together in 
the body, and constituted his spiritual man. From these consider- 
ations it may be seen, that while conjugal love is in the mind, 
it is similar to itself in the body; and since love is heat, that it 
opens the externals of the body from the interiors ; but on the 
other hand, that the privation thereof, which is cold, closes the 
externals of the body from the interiors : hence it is manifest 
what is the cause of the faculty [of conjugial love] with the 
angels enduring for ever, and what is the cause of its failing 

with men who are cold. 

****** 

261. To the above I shall add THREE MEMORABLE EELATIONU. 
FIKST. In the superior northern quarter near the east in the spi- 
ritual world, there are places of instruction for boys, for youths, 
for men, and also for old men : into these places all who d.'.e 
infants are sent and are educated in heaven ; so also all who 
arrive fresh from the world, and desire information about heaven 
and hell, are sent to the same places. This tract is near the 
east, that all may be instructed by influx from the Lord ; for the 
Lord is the east, bedause he is in the sun there, which from him 
is pure love ; hence the heat from that sun in its essence is love, 
and the light from it in its essence is wisdom. These are in- 
spired into them from the Lord out of that sun ; and they are 
inspired according to reception, and reception is according to the 
love of growing wise. After periods of instruction, those who 
are made intelligent are sent forth thence, and are called disci- 
ples of the Lord. They are sent forth first into the west, and 
those who do not remain there, into the south, and some through 
the south into the east, and are introduced into the societies 
where they are to reside. On a time, while I was meditating 
respecting heaven and hell, I began to desire a universal know- 
ledge of the state of each, being aware, that whoever knows 
uuiversals, may afterwards comprehend particulars, because the 
hitter are contained in the former, as parts in a whole. In thia 
desire I looked to the above tract in the northern quarter near 
the east, where were the places of instruction, and went there by 
a way then open to me. I entered one of the colleges, where 
there were some young men, and addressed the chief teachers 
there who gave instruction, and asked them whether they were 
acquainted with the universals respecting heaven and hell. They 
replied, that they knew some little; "but if we look," said they, 
** towards the east to the Lord, we shall receive illustration and 
knowledge." They did so, and said, "There are three universals 

a Lit) 



261, 262 COSOTGIAL LOVE. 

of hell, which are diametrically opposite to the universal of hea 
ven. The universals of hell are these three loves ; the love of 
dominion grounded in self-love, the love of possessing the goods 
of others grounded in the love of the world, and adulterous love. 
The universals of heaven opposite to these are the three following 
loves ; the love of dominion grounded in the love of use, the love 
of possessing worldly goods grounded in the love of performing 
uses therewith, and love truly conjugial." Hereupon, after 
expressing my good wishes towards them, I took my leave, and 
returned home. "When I was come home, it was said to me. from 
heaven, " Examine those three universals above and beneath, and 
afterwards we shall see them in your hand." It was said in the 
hand, because whatever a man examines intellectually, appears 
to the angels as if inscribed on his hands. 

262. After this I examined the first universal love of hell, 
which is the love of dominion grounded in self-love, and after- 
wards the universal love of heaven corresponding to it, which is 
the love of dominion grounded in the love of uses ; for I was 
not allowed to examine one love without the other, because, 
being opposites, the understanding does not perceive the one 
without the other ; wherefore that each may be perceived, they 
must be set in opposition to each other; for a beautiful and 
handsome face is rendered conspicuous by contrasting it with 
an ugly and deformed one. While I was considering the love of 
dominion grounded in self-love, I perceived that this love was in 
the highest degree infernal, and consequently prevailed with 
those who are in the deepest hell ; and that the love of dominion 
grounded in the love of uses was in the highest degree heavenly, 
and consequently prevailed with those who are in the highest 
heaven. The love of dominion grounded in self-love is in the 
highest degree infernal, because to exercise dominion from self- 
love, is to exercise it from propriitm^ and a man's jproprittm from 
his birth is essential evil, which is diametrically opposite to the 
Lord ; wherefore the more persons who are under the influence 
of such evil, advance therein, the more they deny God and the 
holy things of the church, and worship themselves and nature. 
Let such persons,! entreat them, examine that evil in themselves, 
and they will see this to be the case. This love also is of such a 
nature, that in proportion as it is left unrestrained, which is the 
case so long as it is not checked by impossibilities, in the same 

Eroportion it rushes impetuously from step to step, even to the 
ighest, and there also finds no bounds, but is sad and sorrowful 
because there is no higher step for it to ascend. This love with 
statesmen is so intense that they wish to be kings and emperors, 
and if It were possible, to have dominion over all things of the 
world, and to be called kings of kings and emperors of emperors; 
while the same love with the clergy is so intense that they wish 
to be gods and, as for as is possible, to have dominion orer all 
216 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 262, 263 

tfiings of heaven, and to be called gods of gods. That neither of 
these acknowledge any God, will be seen in what follows. On 
the other hand, those who desire to exercise dominion from the 
love of uses, do not desire it from themselves, but from the 
Lord ; since the love of uses is from the Lord, and is the Lord 
himself: these regard dignities only as means to the performance 
of uses, setting uses far above dignities ; whereas the former set 
dignities far above uses. 

263. While I was meditating on these things, an angel from 
the Lord said to me, 4i You shall presently see, and be convinced 
by ocular demonstration, what is the nature and quality of that 
infernal love." Then suddenly the earth opened on the left, and 
I saw a devil ascending from hell, with a square cap on his 
head let down over his forehead even to his eyes : his face was 
full of pimples as of a burning fever, his eyes fierce and firy, his 
breast swelling immensely ; from his mouth he belched smoke like 
a furnace, his loins seemed all in a blaze, instead of feet he had 
bony ankles without flesh, and from his body exhaled a stinking 
and filthy heat. On seeing him I was alarmed, and cried out, 
" Approach no nearer ; tell me, whence are you ?" He replied 
in a noarse tone of voice, "I am from below, where I am with 
two hundred in the most supereminent of all societies. We are 
all emperors of emperors, king of kings, dukes of dukes, and 
princes of princes ; no one in our society is barely an emperor, a 
ting, a duke, or a prince. We sit there on thrones of thrones, 
and despatch thence mandates through the whole world and 
beyond it." I then said to him, " Do you not see that you are 
insane from the phantasy of super-eminence?" and he replied, 
"How can you say so, when we absolutely seem to ourselves, 
and are also acknowledged by each other, to have such 
distinction ?" On hearing this, I was unwilling to repeat my 
charge of insanity, as he was insane from phantasy; and I 
was informed that this devil, during his abode in the world, had 
been only a house-steward, and at that time he was so lifted up 
in spirit, that he despised all mankind in comparison with him- 
self, and indulged in the phantasy that he was more worthy 
than a king, and even than an emperor; in consequence of 
which proud conceit, he had denied God, and had regarded all 
the holy things of the church as of no concern to himself, but of 
some to the stupid multitude. At length I asked him, " How 
long do you two hundred thus glory among yourselves?" He 
replied to eternity ; but such of us as torture others for denying 
our super- eminence, sink under ground ; for we are allowed t j 
glory, but not to do mischief to any one." I asked him again 
" Do you know what befalls those who sink under ground V 9 
He said, " They sink down into a certain prison, where they are 
called viler than the vile, or the vilest, and are set to work," I 

217 



263, 264 coNJuaiAL LOTJB 

then said to him. " Take heed therefore, lest you also should 
sink down." 

264. After this the earth again opened, but now on the 
right ; and I saw another devil rising thence, who had on hfe 
head a kind of turban, wrapped about with spires as^ of a snake, 
the head of which stood out from the crown ; his face was 
leprous from the forehead to the chin, and so were his hands ; 
his loins were naked and as black as soot, through which was dis- 
cernible in dusky transparence the fire as of a furnace ; and the 
ankles of his feet were like two vipers. The former devil, on 
seeing him, fell on his knees, and adored him. On my asking 
why he did so, he said, " He is the God of heaven and earth, 
and is omnipotent." I then asked the other, " What do you 
say to this ?" he replied, " What shall I say ? I have all power 
over heaven and hell ; the lot of all souls is in my hand." Again 
I enquired, " How can he, who is emperor of emperors, so sub- 
mit himself, and how can you receive adoration ?" he answered, 
" He is still ray servant; what is an emperor before God? the 
thunder of excommunication is in my right hand." I then said 
to him, "How can you be so insane? In the world you were 
only a canon; and because you were infected with the phantasy 
that you also had the keys of heaven, and thence the power of 
binding and loosing, you have inflamed your spirit to such a 
degree of madness, that you now believe yourself to be very 
God." Upon this he swore with indignation that it was so, and 
said, "The Lord has not any power in heaven, because he has 
transferred it all to us. We have only to give the word of com- 
mand, and heaven and hell reverently obey us. If we send any 
one to hell, the devils immediately receive him ; and so do the 
angels receive those whom we send to heaven." I asked further, 
"How many are there in your society?" he said, "Throe hun- 
dred; and we are all gods there ; but I am god of gods." After 
this the earth opened beneath the feet of each, and they sank 
down into their respective hells ; and I saw that beneath their 
hells were workhouses, into which those who injure others would 
fall ; for every one in hell is left to his phantasy, and is also per- 
mitted to glory in it; but he is not allowed to injure another* 
The reason why such are there, is, because a man is then in his 
spirit ; and the spirit, after it is separated from the body, cornea 
into the full liberty of acting according to its affections and con- 
sequent thoughts. I was afterwards permitted to look into their 
hells : that which contained the emperors of emperors and kings 
of kings, was full of all uncleanness; and the inhabitants ap- 
peared like various kinds of wild beasts, with fierce eyes ; and so 
it was in the other, which contained the gods and the god of 
gods : in it there appeared the direful birds of night, which are 
called oohim and ijim^ flying about them. The images of their 
218 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 264: 266 

phantasies were presented to me under this appearance. From 
these circumstances it was manifest, what is the nature and 
quality of political and ecclesiastical self-love ; that the latter 
would make its votaries desirous of being gods, while the former 
would make them desirous of being emperors; and that under 
the influence of such loves men wish and strive to attain the 
objects of their desires, so far as they are left without restraint. 

265. Afterwards a hell was opened, where I saw two men, 
one sitting on a bench, holding his feet in a basket full of ser- 
pents which seemed to be creeping upwards by his breast even 
to his neck ; and the other sitting on a blazing ass, at whose 
sides red serpents were creeping, raising their heads and necks, 
and pursuing the rider. I was told that they had been popes 
who had compelled emperors to resign their dominions, and had 
ill-treated them both in word and deed at Eome, whither they 
went to supplicate and adore them ; and that the basket in which 
were the serpents, and the blazing ass with snakes at his side?, 
were representations of their love of dominion grounded on sell- 
love, and that such appearances are seen only by those who look 
at them from a distance. There were some canons present, 
whom I asked whether those had really been popes ? They said, 
that they were acquainted with them, and knew that they had 
been such. 

266. After beholding these sad and hideous spectacles, I 
looked around, and saw two angels in conversation standing near 
me. One wore a woollen robe that shone bright with flaming 
purple, and under it a vest of fine bright linen ; the other had 
on similar garments of scarlet, together with a turban studded 
on the right side with carbuncles. I approached them, and, 
greeting them with a salutation of peace, respectfully asked them, 
kk For what purpose are you here below P They replied, " We 
have let ourselves down from heaven by the Lord's command, to 
speak with you respecting the blessed lot of those who are desir- 
ous to have dominion from the love of uses. We are worshipers 
of the Lord. I am prince of a society ; my companion is chief 
priest of the same," The prince moreover said, "lam the ser- 
vant of my society, because I serve it by doing uses : J? the other 
said, " I am minister of the church there, because in serving 
them I minister holy things to the uses of their souls. We both 
are in perpetual joys grounded in the eternal happiness which is 
in them from the Lord. All things in our society are splendid 
and magnificent ; they are splendid from gold and precious 
stones, and magnificent from palaces and paradises. The reason 
of this is, because our love of dominion is not grounded in sell- 
love, but in the love of uses : and as the love of uses is from the 
Lord, therefore all good uses in the heavens are splendid and 
refulgent ; and as all in our society are in this love, therefore the 
atmosphere appears golden from the light which partakes of tho 



266 CONJUGIAL LOVK 

gun's flame-principle, and the sun's flarae-l rinciple corresponds 
to that lore." As they said this, they appeared to tne to be 
encompassed with such a sphere, from which an aromatic odor 
issued that was perceivable by the senses. I mentioned this 
circumstance to them, and intreated them to continue their dis- 
course respecting the love of uses ; and they proceeded thus : 
"The dignities which we enjoy, we indeed sought after and 
solicited for no other end than that we might be enabled 
more fully to perform uses, and to extend them more widely. 
We are also encompassed with honor, and we accept it, not for 
ourselves, but for the good of the society; for the brethren and 
consociates, who form the commonalty of the society, scarcely 
know but that the honors of our dignities are in ourselves, and 
consequently that the uses which we perform are from ourselves ; 
but we feel otherwise, being sensible that the honors of the dig- 
nities are out of ourselves, and that they are as the garments 
with which we are clothed ; but that the uses which we perform, 
from the love of them, are within us from the Lord : and this 
love receives its blessedness from communication by uses with 
others ; and we know from experience, that so far as we do uses 
from the love thereof, so far that love increases, and with it wis- 
dom, whereby communication is effected ; but so far as we retain 
uses in ourselves, and do not communicate them, so far blessed- 
ness perishes; and in such case use becomes like food stored up 
in the stomach, which, not being dispersed, affords no nourish- 
ment to the body and its parts, but remains undigested, and 
thereby causes loathing: in a word, the whole heaven is nothing 
but a continent of use, from first principles to last. "What is use 
but the actual love of our neighbor? and what holds the hea- 
vens together with this love?" On hearing this I asked, "How 
can any one know whether he performs uses from self-love, or 
from the love of uses? every man, both good and bad, performs 
uses, and that from some love. Suppose that in the world there 
be a society composed of mere devils, and another composed of 
mere angels ; I am of opinion that the devils in their society, 
from the fire of self-love, and the splendor of their own glory, 
would do as many uses as the angels in their society ; who then 
can know from what love, and from what origin uses flow?" To 
this the two angels replied, " Devils do uses for the sake of them- 
selves and of reputation, that they may be raised to honors or 
may gain wealth ; but angels do not do uses from such motives, 
but for the sake of uses from the love thereof. A man cannot 
discern the true quality of those uses ; but the Lord discerns it 
Every one who believes in the Lord, and shuns evils as sins, 

Eerforms uses from the Lord ; but every one who neither believes 
i the Lord, nor shuns evils as sins, does uses from self and for 
the sake of self. This is the difference between the uses done by 
devils and those done by angels." HaTing said this, the two 
220 



ANI rrs CHASTE DELIGHTS, 266, 267 

angels departed ; and I saw them from afar carried in a firj? 
chariot like Elias, and conveyed into their respective heavens. 

267. THE SECOND MEMORABLE RELATION. Not long after this 
inter vie w^ with the angels, I entered a certain grove, and while I 
was walking there, I meditated on those who are in the concu- 
piscence and consequent phantasy of possessing the things of the 
world ; and then at some distance from me I saw two angels in 
conversation, and by turns looking at me; I therefore went 
nearer to them, and as I approached they thus accosted me : 
" "We have perceived in ourselves that you are meditating on 
what we are conversing about, or that we are conversing on 
what you are meditating about, which is a consequence of the 
reciprocal communication of affections." I asked therefore what 
they were conversing about ? they replied, " About phantasy, 
concupiscence, and intelligence ; and Just now about those who 
lelight themselves in the vision and imagination of possessing 
whatever the world contains." I then entreated them to favor 
me with their sentiments on those three subjects, concupiscence, 
phantasy, and intelligence. They began by saying, "Every on a 
is by birth interiorly in concupiscence, but by education exte- 
riorly in ^intelligence ; and no one is in intelligence, still less in 
wisdom, interiorly, thus as to his spirit, but from the Lord : for 
every one is withheld from the concupiscence of evil, and held 
in intelligence, according as he looks to the Lord, and is at the 
same time in conjunction with him ; without this, a man is mere 
concupiscence ; yet still in externals, or as to the body, he is in 
intelligence arising from education ; for a man lusts after honors 
and wealth, or eminence and opulence, and in order to attain 
them, e it is necessary that he appear moral and spiritual, thus 
intelligent and wise; and he learns so to appear from infancy. 
This the reason why, as soon as he comes among men, or into 
company, he inverts his spirit, and removes it from concu- 
piscence, and speaks and acts from the fair and honorable 
maxims which he has learnt from infancy, and retains in the 
bodily memory : and he is particularly cautious, lest anything of 
the wild concupiscence prevalent in his spirit should discover 
itself!, Hence every man who is not interiorly led by the Lord, 
is a pretender, a sycophant, a hypocrite, and thereby an apparent 
man, and yet not a man ; of whom it may be said, that his shell 
or body is wise, and his kernel or spirit insane ; also that his 
external is human, and his internal bestial. Such persons, with 
the hinder part of the head look upwards, and with the fore part 
downwards ; thus they walk as if oppressed with heaviness, with 
the head hanging down and the countenance prone to the earth ; 
and when they put off the body, and become spirits, and are 
thereby set at liberty from external restraints, they become the 
madnesses of their respective concupiscences. Those who are in 
sell-love desire to domineer over the universe, yea, to extend its 

221 



267, 268 CONJTOIAL LOVE 

limits In order to enlarge their dominion, of which they see no 
end : those who are in the love of the world desire to possess 
whatever the world contains, and are full of grief and envy In 
case any of its treasures are hid and concealed from them by 
others : therefore to prevent such persons from becoming mere 
concupiscences, and thereby no longer men, they are permitted 
in the spiritual world to think from a fear of the loss of reputa- 
tion, and thereby of honor and gain, and also from a fear of the 
law and its penalties, and also to give their mind to some study or 
w<^ik whereby they are kept in externals and thus in a state of 
intelligence, however wild and insane they may be interiorly." 
After this I asked them, whether all who are in any concupis- 
cence, are also in the phantasy^ thereof; they replied, that those 
Are in the phantasy of their respective concupiscences, who think 
interiorly in themselves, and too much indulge their imagination 
by talking with themselves ; for these almost separate their spirit 
from connection with the body, and by vision overflow the under- 
standing, and take a foolish delight as if they were possessed of 
the universe and all that it contains : into this delirium every 
man comes after death, who has abstracted his spirit from the 
body, and has not wished to recede from the delight of the 
delirium by thinking at all religiously respecting evils and falses, 
aad least of all respecting the inordinate love of self as being 
destructive of love to the Lord, and respecting the inordinate 
love of the world, as being destructive of neighborly love. 

268. After this the two angels and also myself were seized 
with a desire of seeing those who from worldly love are in the 
visionary concupiscence or phantasy of possessing all wealth; and 
we perceived that we were inspired with this desire to the end 
that such visionaries might be known. Their dwellings were 
under the earth of our feet, but above hell : we therefore looked 
at each other and said, " Let us go." There was an opening, 
and in it a ladder by which we descended ; and we were told 
that we must approach them from the east, lest we should enter 
into the mist of their phantasy, whereby our understanding and 
at the same time our sight would be obscured ; and lo I there 
appeared a house built of reeds, and consequently full of chin&s, 
standing in a mist, which continually issued like smoke through 
the chinks of three of the walls. We entered, and saw perhaps 
fifty here and fifty there sitting on benches, with their faces 
turned from the east and south, and looking towards the west 
and north. Before each person there was a table, on which were 
large purses, and by the purses a great quantity of gold coin : 
BO we asked them, "Is that the wealth ol all the persons in the 
world f M they replied, " Not of all in the world, but of all in the 
kingdom." The sound of their voice was hissing; and they had 
round faces, which glistened like the shell of a snail, and the 
pupils of their eyes m a green plane as it were shot forth ligbt- 

te 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 268, 269 

ning, which was an effect of the light of phantasy. We stood in 
the midst of them, and said, " You believe that yon possess all 
the wealth of the kingdom ;" they replied, " "We do possess it*" 
"We then asked, " which ot you I" they said, " Every one ;" 
and we asked, "How every one 2 there are many of you;" they 
Baid, " Every one of us knows that all which another has is his 
own. No one is allowed to think, and still less to say, c Mine are 
not thine ; but every one may think and say, < Thine are mine.' " 
The coin on the tables appeared, even to us, to be pure gold ; 
but when we let in light from the east, we saw that they were 
little grains of gold, which they had magnified to such a degree 
by a union of their common phantasy. They said, that every 
one that enters ought to bring with him some gold, which they 
cut into small pieces, and these again into little grains, and by 
the unanimous force of their jphantasy they increase them into 
larger coin. We then said, " Were you not born men of reason ; 
whence then have you this visionary infatuation?" they said, u We 
know that it is an imaginary vanity ; but as it delights the 
interiors of our minds, we enter here and are delighted as with 
the possession of all things : we continue in this place, how- 
ever, only a few hours, at the end of which we depart; and as 
often as we do so we again become of sound mind ; yet still our 
visionary delight alternately succeeds and occasions our alternate 
entrance into and departure from these habitations : thus we are 
alternately wise and foolish ; we also know that a hard lot awaits 
those who by cunning rob others of their goods." We inquired, 
"What lot?" they said, "They are swallowed up and are 
thrust naked into some infernal prison, where they are kept to 
hard labor for clothes and food, and afterwards for some pieces 
of coin of trifling value, which they collect, and in which they 
place the joy of their hearts ; but if they do any harm to their 
companions, they are fined a part of their coin." 

269. Afterwards we ascended from these hells to the south, 
where we had been before, and the angels related there several 
interesting particulars respecting concupiscence not visionary or 
phantastic, in which ajil men are born ; namely, that while they 
are in it, they are like persons infatuated, and yet seem to them- 
selves to be most eminently wise ; and that from this infatuation 
they are alternately let into the rational principle which is in 
their externals ; in which state they see, acknowledge, and con- 
fess their insanity ; but still they are very desirous to quit their 
rational and enter their insane state ; and also do let themselves 
into it, as into a free and delightful state succeeding a forced and 
undelightful one; thus it is concupiscence and not intelligence 
that interiorly pleases them. There are three universal loves 
which form tne constituent principles of every man by creation 
neighbourly love, which also is the love of doing uses ; the love 
of the world, which also is the love of possessing wealth ; and 

223 



26$ CONJTOIAL LOVE 

the love of self, which also is the love of bearing rule over others. 
Neighbourly love, or the love of doing uses, is a spiritual love; 
but the love of the world, or the love of possessing wealth, is a 
material love ; whereas the love of self, or the love of bearing 
rule over others, is a corporeal love. A man is a man while neigh- 
bourly love, or the love of doing uses, constitutes the head, the 
love of the world the body, and the love of self the feet; 
whereas if the love of the world constitutes the head, the mania 
as it were hunched-backed ; but when the love of self constitutes 
the head, he is like a man standing not on his feet, but on the 
palms of his hands with his head downwards and his haunches 
upwards. When neighbourly love constitutes the head, and the 
two other loves in order constitute the body and feet, the man 
appears from heaven of an angelic countenance, with a beautiful 
rainbow about his head ; whereas if the love of the world consti- 
tutes the head, he appears from heaven of a pale countenance 
like a corpse, with a yellow circle about his head ; but if the love 
of self constitutes the head, he appears from heaven of a dusky 
countenance, with a white circle about his liedd." Hereupon I 
asked, "What do the circles about the head represent?" they 
replied, " They represent intelligence ; the white circle about the 
head of the dusky countenance represents, that' his intelligence 
is in externals, or about him, but insanity is in his internals, or 
in him. A man also who is of such a quality and character, is 
wise while in the body, but insane while iii the spirit ; and no 
man is wise in spirit but from the Lord, as is the case when he 
is regenerated and created again or anew by him." As they said 
this, the earth opened to the left, and through the opening 1 saw 
a devil rising with a white lucid circle around his head, and I 
asked him, Who he was ? He said, u I am Lucifer, the sou of 
the morning : and because I made myself like the Most High, 
I was cast down." Nevertheless he was not Lucifer, but believed 
himself to be so. I then said, i Since you were cast down, how can 
you rise again out of hell?" he replied, u There I arn a devil, but 
here I am an angel of light: do you not see that my head is sur- 
rounded by a lucid sphere? you shall also see, if you wish, that 
I am super-moral among the moral, super-rational among the ra- 
tional, yea, super-spiritual among the spiritual ; lean also preach ; 
yea, I nave preached." I asked him, u What have you preached 8" 
aeeaid, "Against fraudulent dealers and adulterers, and against 
all infernal loves ; on this occasion too I, Lucifer, called myself 
a devil, and denounced vengeance against myself as a devil ; and 
therefore I was extolled to the skies with praises. Hence it is 
that I am called the son of the morning ; and, what I myself 
was surprised at, while I was in the pulpit, I thought no other 
than that I was speaking rightly and properly ; but I discovered 
that this arose from my being in externals, which at that time 
were separated from my internals ; but although I discovered this, 

224: 



AOT ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 269, 270 

still [ could not change myself, because through my haughtiness 
I did not look to God." I next asked him, " How could you sc 
speak, when you are yourself a fraudulent dealer, an adulterer, 
and a devil ?" He answered, " I am one character when I am 
in externals or in the body, and another when in internals or in 
the spirit ; in the body I am an angel, but in the spirit a devil ; 
for in the body I am in the understanding, but in the spirit I am 
in the will ; and the understanding carries me upwards, whereas 
the will carries me downwards. When I am in the understanding 
my head is surrounded by a white belt, but when the understand- 
ing submits itself entirely to the will, and becomes subservient 
to it, which is our last lot, the belt grows black and disappears; 
and when this is the case, we cannot again ascend into this light." 
Afterwards he spoke of his twofold state, the external and the 
internal, more rationally than any other person ; but on a sudden 
when he saw the angels attendant on me, his face and voice were 
inflamed, and he became black, even as to the belt round his 
head, and he sunk down into hell through the opening from which 
he arose. The bystanders, from what they had seen, came to 
this conclusion, that a man is such as his love, and not such as 
his understanding is ; since the love easily draws over the under- 
standing to its side, and enslaves it. I then asked the angels, 
" Whence have devils such rationality?" They said, " It is from 
the glory of self-love ; for self-love is surrounded by glory, and 
glory elevates the understanding even into the light of heaven ; 
for with every man the understanding is capable of being ele- 
vated according to knowledges, but the will only by a life accord- 
ing to the truths of the church and of reason : hence even 
atheists, who are in the glory of reputation arising from self-love, 
and thence iu a high conceit of their own intelligence, enjoy a 
more sublime rationality than many others ; this, however, is 
only when they are in the thought of the understanding, and 
not when they are in the affection of the will. The affection of 
the will possesses a man's internal, whereas the thought of the 
understanding possesses his external." The angel further de- 
clared the reason why every man is constituted of the three lovea 
above mentioned ; namely, the love of use, the love of the world, 
and the love of self; which is, that he may think from God, 
although as from himself. He also said, that the supreme prin- 
ciples in a man are turned upwards to God, the middle outwards 
to the world, and the lowest downwards to self ; and since the 
latter are turned downwards, a man thinks as from himself, 
when yet it is from God* 

270. THE THIRD MEMOEABLB KBLATIOK. One morning on 
awaking from sleep my thoughts were deeply engaged on some 
arcana of conjugial love, and at length on this, " In what region 
of the human mind does love truly comuaial reside^ and thence in 
what region does conjugial cold reside ? I knew that there are 

15 225 



270 CONJTTGIAL LOVE 

three regions of the human mind, one above the other, and that 
in the lowest region dwells natural love ; in the superior, spi- 
ritual love ; and in the supreme, celestial love ; and thatin^each 
region there is a marriage of good and truth ; and good is of 
love, and truth is of wisdom ; that in each region there is a mar- 
riage of love and wisdom ; and that this marriage is the same as 
the marriage of the will and the understanding, since the will i 
the receptacle of love, and the understanding the receptacle of 
wisdom. "While I was thus deeply engaged in thought, lo! I 
aw two swans flying towards the north, and presently two birds 
of paradise flying towards the south, and also two turtle doves 
flying in the east : as I was watching their flight, I saw that the 
two swans bent their course from the north to the east, and the 
two birds of paradise from the south, also that they united with 
the two doves in the east, and flew together to a certain lofty 
palace there, about which there were olives, palms, and beeches. 
The palace had three rows of windows, one above the other ; 
and while I was making my observations, I saw the swans fly into 
the palace through open windows in the lowest row, the birds of 
paradise through others in the middle row, and the doves through 
others in the highest. When I had observed this, an angel pre- 
sented himself, and said, "Do you understand what you have 
seen ?" I replied, " In a small degree." lie said, " That palace 
represents the habitations of conjugial love, such as are in hu- 
man minds. Its highest part, into which the doves flew, repre- 
sents the highest region of the mind, where conjugial love dwells 
in the love of good with its wisdom ; the middle part, into which 
the birds of paradise flew, represents the middle region, where 
conjugial love dwells in the love of truth with its intelligence ; and 
the lowest part, into which the swans flew, represents the lowest 
region of the mind, where conjugial love dwells in the love of what 
is just and right with its knowledge. The three pairs of birds 
also signify these things ; the pair of turtle doves signifies con- 
jugial love of the highest region, the pair of birds of paradise 
conjugial love of the middle region, and the pair of swans con- 
jugial love of the lowest region. Similar things are signified by 
the three kinds of trees about the palace, the olives, palms, and 
beeches. We in heaven call the highest region of the mind ce~ 
iestial; the middle spiritual, and the lowest natural ; and we 
perceive them as stories in a house, one above another, and an 
ascent from one to the other by steps as by stairs ; and in each 
part as it were two apartments, one for love, the other for wisdom, 
mud in front as it were a chamber, where love with its wisdom, 
or good with its truth, or, what is the same, the will with its 
understanding, consociate in bed. In that palace are presented 
as in an image all the arcana of conjugial love." On hearing this, 
being inflamed with a desire of seeing it, I asked whether ary- 
one was permitted to enter and see it, as it was a 
226 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 270, 271 

palace f He replied, "None biit those who are in the third 
heaven, because to them every representative of love and wis- 
dorn becomes real : from them I have heard what I have related 
to yon, and also this particular, that love truly conjngial dwells 
in the highest region in the midst of mutual love, in the 
marriage-chamber or apartment of the will, and also in the 
midst of the perceptions of wisdom in the marriage-chamber or 
apartment of the understanding, and that they consociate in bed 
in the chamber which is in front, in the east." I also asked, 
"Why are ^ there two ^marriage-chambers ?" He said, " The 
husband is in the marriage-chamber of the understanding, and 
the wife in that of the will." I then asked, " Since coniugial 
love dwells there, where then does conjugial cold dwell?" He 
replied, "It dwells also in the supreme region, but only in the 
marriage-chamber of the understanding, that of -the will being 
closed there : for the understanding with its truths, as often as 
it pleases, can ascend by a winding staircase into the highest 
region into its marriage-chamber; but if the will with the good 
of its love does not ascend at the same time into the consociate 
marriage-chamber, the latter is closed, and cold ensues in the 
other : this is conjugial cold. The understanding, while such 
cold prevails towards the wife, looks downwards to the lowest 
region, and also, if not prevented by fear, descends to warm 
itself there at an illicit fire." Having thus spoken, he was about 
to recount further particulars respecting conjugial love from its 
images in that palace; but he said, " Enough at this time; 
inquire first whether what has been already said is above the 
lavel of ordinary understandings ; if it is, what need of saying 
ary more? but if not, more will be discovered." 



ON THE CAUSES OF APPARENT LOVE, FRIENDSHIP, AND FAVOR 

IN MARRIAGES. 

271. HAVING treated of the causes of cold and separation, 
it i >llows from order that the causes of apparent love, friendship, 
and favor in marriages, should also be treated of; for it is well 
known, that although cold separates the minds (anitnos) of 
married partners at the present day, still they live together, and 
have children ; which would not be the case, unless there were 
also apparent loves, alternately similar to or emulous of the 
warmth of genuine love. That these appearances are necessary 
and useful, and that without them there would be no houses, and 
consequently no societies, will be seen in what follows. More- 
over, some conscientious persons may be distressed with the idea, 
that the disagreement of mind subsisting between them and their 
married partners, and the internal alienation thence arising, may 

227 



271 CONJTJGIA.L LOVE 

be their own fatat, and may be imputed to them as such, and on 
this account they are grieved at the heart ; but as it is out oi 
their power to prevent internal disagreements, it is enough for 
them, by apparent love and favor, from conscientious motives to 
subdue the inconveniences which might arise : hence also friend- 
ship may possibly return, in which conjugial love lies concealed 
'on the part of sneh, although not on the part of the other. But 
this subject, like the foregoing, from the great variety of its 
matter, shall be treated of in the following distinct articles: I. 
In the natural world almost all are capable of being joined toqe- 
her as to external, lut not as to internal affections, if these dis- 
agree and are apparent, II. In the spiritual world all are joined 
together according to internal, but not according to external affec- 
tions, unless these act in unity with the internal. III. It is the 
external affections, according to which matrimony is generally 
contracted in the world. IV. But in case they are not influenced 
"by internal affections, lohich conjoin minds, the bonds of matri- 
mony are loosed in the house. Y. Nevertheless those lands must 
continue in the world till the decease of one of the parties, VI. 
In cases of matrimony, in which the internal affections do not 
conjoin, there are external affections, which assume a semblance 
of the internal and tend to consociate. VII. Hence come ap- 
parent love, friendship, and favor between married partners. 
VIII. These appearances are assumed conjugial semblances, and 
they are commendalle, leoause useful and necessary. IX. These 
assumed conjugial semblances, in the case of a spiritual man 
(homo) conjoined to a natural, are founded injustice and judge- 
ment. X. For various reasons these assumed conjugial semblances 
with natural men are founded in prudence. XL They are for the 
sake of amendment and accommodation. XII. They are for the 
saJce of preserving order in domestic affairs, and for the sake of 
mutual aid. XIII. They are for the sake of unanimity in the 
care of infants and the education of children. XIV. They are 
for the sake of peace in the house. XV. They are for the sake 
of reputation out of the house. XVI. They are for the sake of 
various favors expected from the married partner, or from his or 
Tier relations / and thus from the fear of losing such favors. 
XVII. They are for the sake of having Uemishes excused, and 
thereby^ of avoiding disgrace. XVIII. They are for the sake of 
reconciliation. XIX. In case favor does not cease with the wff l e 3 
when faculty ceases with the man, there may exist a friendship 
resembling conjugial friendship, when the parties grow old. XX. 
There are vamous kinds of apparent love and friendship between 
married partners, one ojr whom is brought under the yoke, and 
therefore is suited to the other. XXL In the world there are 
infernal, marriages between persons who interiorly are the most 
wwet&rate enemies, and exteworly are as the closest friends. We 
proceed to an explanation of each article. 
' 228 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 272, 273 

I. IN THE NATURAL WORLD ALMOST ALL ARE CAPABLE 
OF BEING JOINED TOGETHER AS TO EXTERNAL, BUT NOT AS TO 
INTERNAL AFFECTIONS, IF THESE DISAGREE AND ARE APPARENT. 

The reason of this is, because in the world every one is clothed 
with a material body, and this is overcharged with lusts, which 
are in it as dregs that fall to the bottom, when the must of the 
wine is clarified. Such are the constituent substances of which, 
the bodies of men in the world are composed. Hence it is that 
the internal affections, which are of the mind, do not appear ; 
and in many cases, scarce a grain of them transpires ; for the 
body either absorbs them, and involves them in its dregs, or by 
simulation which has been learned from infancy conceals them 
deeply from the sight of others; and by these means the man 
puts himself into the state of every affection which he observes 
in another, and allures his affection to himself, and thus they 
unite. The reason why they unite is, because every affection 
has its delight, and delights tie minds together. But it would 
be otherwise if the internal affections, like the external, appeared 
visibly in the face and gesture, and were made manifest to the 
hearing by the tone of the speech ; or if their delights were 
sensible to the nostrils or smell, as they are in the spiritual world : 
in such case, if they disagreed so as to be discordant, they would 
separate minds from each other, and according to the perception 
of antipathy, the minds would remove to a distance. From these 
considerations it is evident, that in the natural world almost all 
are capable of being joined together as to external, but not as to 
internal affections, if these disagree and are apparent. 

273. II. IN THE SPIRITUAL WORLD ALL ARE CONJOINED 
ACCORDING TO INTERNAL, BUT NOT ACCORDING TO EXTERNAL 
AFFECTIONS, UNLESS THESE ACT IN UNITY WITH THE INTERNAL. 

This is, because in the spiritual world the material body is re- 
jected, which could receive and bring forth the forms of all 
affections, as we have said just above; and a man (homo) when 
stripped of that body is in his internal affections, which his body 
had before concealed : hence it is, that in the spiritual world 
similarities and dissimilarities, or sympathies and antipathies, 
are not only felt, but also appear in the face, the speech, and the 
gesture ; wherefore in that world similitudes are conjoined, and 
dissimilitudes separated. This is the reason why the universal 
heaven is arranged by the Lord according to all the varieties of 
the affections of the love of good and truth, and, on the contrary, 
tell according to all the varieties of the love of what is evil and 
false. As angels and spirits, like men in the world, have internal 
and external affections, and as, in the spiritual world, the internal 
affections cannot be concealed by the external, they therefore 
transpire and manifest themselves ; hence with angels and spirits 
both the internal and external affections are reduced to similitude 
and correspondence : after which their internal affections are, by 

22* 



273 275 OONJUGIAL LOVE 

the external, imaged in their faces, and perceived in the tone of 
their speech ; they also appear in their behaviour arid manners. 
Angels and spirits have internal and external affections, because 
they have minds and bodies ; and affections with the thoughts 
thence derived belong to the mind, and sensations with the plea- 
sures thence derived to the body. It frequently happens in the 
world of spirits, that friends meet after death, and recollect their 
friendships in the former world, and on such occasions believe 
that they shall live on terms of friendship as formerly ; but when 
their consociation, which is only of the external affections, is 
perceived in heaven, a separation ensues according to their in- 
ternal ; and in this case some are removed from the place of their 
meeting into the north, some into the west, and each to such a 
distance from the other, that they can no longer see or know 
each other ; for in the places appointed for them to remain at, 
their faces are changed so as to become the image of their internal 
affections. From these considerations it is manifest, that in the 
spiritual world all are conjoined according to internal affections, 
and not according to external, unless these act in unity with the 
internal 

274. III. IT IS THE EXTERNAL AFFECTIONS ACCORDING TO 
WHICH MATRIMONY IS GENERALLY CONTRACTED IN THE WORLD. 

The reason of this is, because the internal affections are seldom 
consulted ; and even if they are, still their similitude is not seen 
in the woman ; for she, by a peculiar property with which she is 
gifted from her birth, withdraws the internal affections into the 
inner recesses of her mind. There are various external affec- 
tions which induce men to engage in matrimony* The first 
affection of this age is an increase of property by wealth, as well 
with a view to becoming rich as for a plentiful supply of the 
comforts of life ; the second is a thirst after honors, with a view 
either of being held in high estimation or of an increase of 
fortune : besides these, there are various allurements and con* 
cupiscences which do not afford an opportunity of ascertaining 
the agreement of the internal affections. From these few con* 
siderations it is manifest, that matrimony is generally contracted 
in the world according to external affections. 

275. IV. BUT IN CASE THEY ARE NOT INFLUENCED BY 

NTERNAL AFFECTIONS, WHICH CONJOIN MINDS, THE BONDS OF 
KATKIMONY ARE LOOSED IN THE HOUSE. It IS said in the hou^ 

because it is done privately between the parties ; as is the case 
when the first warmth, excited during courtship and breaking 
out into a flame as the nuptials approach, successively abates 
from the discordance of the internal affections, and at length 
passes off into cold. It is well known that in this case the external 
affections, which had induced and allured the parties to inatri 
laony, disappear, so that they no longer effect conj unction* That 
cola arises from various causes, internal, external,* and accidental, 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 275 277 

all whicli originate in a dissimilitude of internal inclinations, 
was proved in the foregoing chapter. From these considerations 
the truth of what was asserted is manifest, that unless the ex- 
ternal affections are influenced by internal, which conjoin minds, 
the bonds of matrimony are loosed in the house. 

276. V NEVERTHELESS THOSE BONDS MUST CONTINUE is 

THE WORJjT' TILL THE DECEASE OF ONE OF THE PARTIES. 

This proposition is adduced to the intent that to the eye of 
reason it may more evidently appear how necessary, useful, and 
true it is, that where there is not genuine corijugial love, it 
ought still to be assumed, that it may appear as if there were. 
The case would be otherwise if the marriage contract was not to 
continue to the end of life, but might be dissolved at pleasure 
as was the case with the Israelitish nation, who claimed to them- 
selves the liberty of putting away their wives for every cause 
This is evident from the following passage in Matthew : " The 
pharisees came, and said unto Jesus, Is it lawful for a man to 
put away his wife for every cause t And when Jesus answer e^ 
that it is not lawful to put away a wife and to marry another J 
except on account of whoredom, they replied that nevertheless 
Moses commanded to giue a bill of divorce and to pud her away / 
and the disciples said, If the case of a man with his wife be Si> f 
it is not expedient to marry" xix. 3 10. Since therefore the 
covenant of marriage is for life, it follows that the appearances 
of love and friendship between married partners are necessary. 
That matrimony, when contracted, must continue till the decease 
of one of the parties, is grounded in the divine law, consequently 
also in rational law, and thence in civil law : in the divine law, 
because, as said above, it is not lawful to put away a wife and 
marry another, except for whoredom ; 111 rational law, because it 
is founded upon spiritual, for divine law and rational are- one 
law ; from both these together, or by the latter from the former, 
it may be abundantly seen what enormities and destructions of 
societies would result from the dissolving of marriage, or the 
putting away of wives, at the good pleasure of the husbands, 
before death. Those enormities and destructions of societies 
may in some measure be seen in the MEMORABLE REIATION 
respecting the origin of conjugial love, discussed by the spirits 
assembled from the nine kingdoms, n. 103 115 ; to which there 
is no need of adding further reasons. But these causes do not 
operate to prevent the permission of separations grounded in 
their proper causes, respecting which see above, n. 252 254 ; 
dnd also of concubinage, respecting which see the second part 
of this work. 

277. VI. IN CASE OF MATRIMONY IN WHICH TH.E INTERNAL 

AFFECTIONS DO NOT CONJOIN, THERE ARE EXTERNAL AFFECTIONS 
WHICH ASSUME A SEMBLANCE OF THE INTERNAL AND TEND TO 

CONSOCIATE. B} T internal affections we mean the mutual incli- 

231 



277 279 CONJUGIAL LOTE 

nations which influence the mind of each of the parties from 
heaven ; whereas by external affections we mean the inclinations 
which influence the mind of each of the parties from the world. 
The latter affections or inclinations indeed equally belong to the 
mind, but they occupy its inferior regions, whereas the former 
occupy the superior: but since both have their allotted seat in 
the mind, it may possibly be believed that they are alike and 
agree ; yet although they" are not alike, still they can appear so : 
in some cases they exist as agreements, and in some as insinuat- 
ing semblances. There is a certain communion implanted in 
each of the parties from the earliest time of the marriage-cove- 
nant, which, notwithstanding their disagreement in minds (ani~ 
mis) still remains implanted ; as a communion of possessions, and 
in many cases a communion of uses, and of the various necessities 
of the house, and thence also a communion of thoughts and of 
certain secrets ; there is also a communion of bed, and of the 
love of children : not to mention several others, which, as they 
are inscribed on the conjugial covenant, are also inscribed on 
their minds. Hence originate especially those external affections 
which resemble the internal ; whereas those which only counter- 
feit them are partly from the same origin and partly from 
another; but on the subject of each more will be said in what 
follows. 

278. VII. HENCE COME APPARENT LOVE, FRIENDSHIP, AND 
FAVOE BETWEEN MAEKiED PARTNERS. Apparent loves, friend- 
ships, and favors between married partners, are a consequence 
of the conjugial covenant being ratified for the term of life, and 
of the conjugial communion thence inscribed on those who ratify 
it ; whence spring external affections resembling the internal, as 
was just now indicated: they are moreover a consequence of 
their causes- which are usefulness and necessity ; from which in 
part exist conjunctive external affections, or their counterfeit, 
whereby external love and friendship appear as internal. 

279. VIII. THESE APPEAKANCES ABE ASSUMED CONJTOIAL 
SEMBLANCES; AND THEY AEE COMMENDABLE, BECAUSE USEFUL 
AND NECESSARY. They are called assumed semblances, because 
they exist with those who disagree in mind, and who from such 
disagreement are interiorly in cold : in this case, when they still 
appear to live united, as duty and decency require, their kind 
offices to each other may be called assumed conjugial semblances; 
which, as being commendable for the sake of uses, are altogether 
to be distinguished from hypocritical semblances ; for hereby all 
those good things are provided for, which are commemorated in 
order below, from article XI XX. They are commendable for 
the sake of necessity, because otherwise those good things would 
be unattained; and yet the parties are enjoined by a covenant 
and compact to live together, and hence it behoves each of them 
to consider it a duty to do so. 

232 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 280 282 

28C, IX. THESE ASSUMED CONJUGIAL SEMBLANCES, IN THE 

CASE OF A SPIRITUAL MAN (JlOmO) CONJOINED TO A NATURAL, 
ARE FOUNDED IN JUSTICE AND JUDGEMENT. The reason of this 

is, because the spiritual man, in all he does, acts from justice 
and judgement ; wherefore he does not regard these assumed 
semblances as alienated from their internal affections, but as 
connected with them ; for he is in earnest, and respects amend- 
ment as an end ; and if he does not obtain this, he respects 
accommodation for the sake of domestic order, mutual aid, the 
care of children, and peace and tranquillity. To these things he 
is led from a principle of justice; and from a principle of judge- 
ment he gives them effect. The reason why a spiritual man so 
lives with a natural one is, because a spiritual man acts spirit- 
ually, even with a natural man. 

281. X. FOR VARIOUS REASONS, THESE ASSUMED CONJUGIAI* 

SEMBLANCES WITH NATURAL MEN ARE FOUNDED IN PRUDENCE. 

In the case of two married partners of whom one is spiritual 
and the other natural, (by the spiritual we mean the one that 
loves spiritual things, and thereby is wise from the Lord, and 
by the natural, the one that loves only natural things, and 
thereby is wise from himself,) when they are united in marriage, 
conjugial love with the spiritual partner is heat, and with the 
natural is cold. It is evident that neat and cold cannot remain 
together, also that heat cannot inflame him that is in cold, un- 
less the cold be first dispersed, and that cold cannot flow into 
him that is in heat, unless the heat be first removed ; hence it is 
that inward love cannot exist between married partners, one of 
whom is spiritual and the other natural ; but that a love resem- 
bling inward love" may exist on the part of the spiritual partner, 
as was said in the foregoing article ; whereas between two natural 
married partners no inward love can exist, since each is cold ; 
and if they have any heat, it is from something unchaste ; never- 
theless such persons may live together in the same house, with 
separate minds (animis\ and also assume looks of love and friend- 
ship towards each other, notwithstanding the disagreement of 
their minds (mentes) : in such case, the external affections, which 
for the most part relate to wealth and possessions, or to honor 
and dignities, may as it were be kindled into a flame; and as 
such enkindling induces fear for their loss, therefore assumed 
conjugial semblances are in such cases necessities, which are 
principally those adduced below in articles XV. XVII. The 
rest of the causes adduced with these may have somewhat in com- 
mon with those relating to the spiritual man ; concerning which 
see above, n. 280 ; but only in case the prudence with the natural 
man is founded in intelligence. 

282. XL THEY ARE FOE THE SAKE OF AMENDMENT AITD 
ACCOMMODATION. The reason why assumed conjugial semblances, 
which are appearances of love and friendship subsisting between 

233 



282, 283 CONJUGIAL LOVE. 

married partners who disagree in mind, are for the sake of 
amendment, is because a spiritual man (homo\ connected with 
a natural one by the matrimonial covenant, intends nothing else 
but amendment of life; which he effects by judicious and elegant 
conversation, and by favors which soothe and flatter the temper 
of the other; but in case these things prove ineffectual, he 
intends accommodation, for the preservation of order in domestic 
affairs, for mutual aid, and for the sake of the infants and 
children, and other similar things ; for, as was shown above, n. 
280, whatever is said and done by a spiritual man (homo) is 
founded in justice and judgement. But with married partners, 
neither of whom is spiritual, but both natural, similar conduct 
may exist, but for other ends ; if for the sake of amendment 
and accommodation, the end is, either that the other party may 
be reduced to a similitude of manners, and be made subordinate 
to his desires, or that some service may be made subservient to 
his own, or for the sake of peace within the house, of reputation 
out of it, or of favors hoped for by the married partner or his 
relations ; not to mention other ends : but with some these ends 
are grounded in the prudence of their reason, with some in 
natural civility, with some in the delights of certain cupidities 
which have been familiar from the cradle, the loss of which is 
dreaded ; besides several ends, which render the assumed kind- 
nesses as of conjugial love more or less counterfeit. There may 
also be kindnesses as of conjugial love out of the house, and 
none within ; those however respect as an end the reputation of 
both parties ; and if they do not respect this, they are merely 
deceptive. 

283. XII. THEY ABB FOB THE SAKE OF PRESERVING ORDER 

IN DOMESTIC AFFAIRS, AOT FOR THE SAKE OF MUTUAL AID. 

Every house in which there are children, their instructors, and 
other domestics, is a small society resembling a large one. The 
latter also consists of the former, as a whole consists of its parts, 
and thereby it exists ; and further, as the security of a large 
society depends on order, so does the security of this small society; 
wherefore as it behoves public magistrates to see and provide that 
order may exist and be preserved in a compound society, so it 
concerns married partners in their single society. But there 
cannot be this order if the husband and wife disagree in their 
minds (cwimis); for thereby mutual counsels and aids are drawn 
different ways, and are divided like their minds, and thus the 
form of the small society is rent asunder ; wherefore to preserve 
order, and thereby to take care of themselves and ax the same 
time of the house, or of the house and at the same time of 
themselves, lest they should come to hurt and fall to ruin, ne- 
cessity requires that the master and mistress agree, and act in 
unity ; and if, from the difference of their minds (mentium) y 
this cannot be done so wel. as it might, both duty and propriety 

234: 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS, 283 285 

require that it be done by representative conjugial friendship, 
That hereby concord is established in houses for the sake of 
necessity and consequent utility, is well known. 

284. XIII. THEY ABE FOE THE SAKE OF UNANIMITY IN 

THE CARE OF INFANTS AND THE EDUCATION OF CHILDREN. 

It is very well known that assumed conjugial semblances, which 
are appearances of love and friendship resembling such as are 
truly conjugial, exist with married partners for the sake of infants 
and children. The common love of the latter causes each married 
partner to regard the other with kindness and favor. The love 
Df infants and children with the mother and the father unite as 
the heart and lungs in the breast. The love of them with the 
mother is as the heart, and the love towards them with the 
father is as the lungs. The reason of this comparison is, because 
the heart corresponds to love, and the lungs to the understand- 
ing ; and love grounded in the will belongs to the mother, and 
love grounded in the understanding to the father. With spiritual 
men (homines) there is conjugial conjunction by means of that 
love grounded in justice and judgement; in justice, because the 
mother had carried them in her womb, had brought them forth 
with pain, and afterwards with unwearied care suckles, nourishes, 
washes, dresses, and educates them, [and in judgement, because 
the father provides for their instruction in knowledge, intelli- 
gence, and wisdom.]* 

285. XIV. THEY ARE FOR THE SAKE OF PEACE IN THE 
HOUSE. Assumed conjugial semblances, or external friendships 
for the sake of domestic peace and tranquillity, relate principally 
to the men, who, from their natural characteristic, act from the 
understanding in whatever they do; and the understanding, 
being exercised in thought, is engaged in a variety of objects 
which disquiet, disturb, and distract the mind; wherefore if 
there were not tranquillity at home, it would come to pass that 
the vital spirits of the parties would grow faint, and their interior 
life would as it were expire, and thereby the health of both mind 
and body would be destroyed. The dreadful apprehension of 
these and several other dangers would possess the minds of the 
men, unless they had an asylum with their wives at home for 
appeasing thedisturbancesarisingintheirunderstandings. More- 
over peace and tranquillity give serenity to their minds, and 
dispose them to receive agreeably the kind attentions of their 
wives, who spare no pains to disperse the mental clouds which 
they are very quick-sighted to observe in their husbands ; more- 
over, the same peace and tranquillity make the presence of their 
wives agreeable. Hence it is evident, that an assumed semblance 
of love, as if it was truly coujugial, for the sake of peace and 

* This passage within the brackets is insa ted to supply what evidently appears to be an omU 
itoa in tha original. 

235 



285 288 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

tranquillity at home, is both necessary and useful. It is further 
to be observed, that with the wives such semblances are not 
assumed as with the men ; but if they appear to resemble them, 
they are the effect of real love, because wives are bom k>ves of 
the understanding of the men ; wherefore they accept kindly 
the favors of their husbands, and if they do not confess it with 
their lips, still they acknowledge it in heart. 

2-86. XV. THEY ABE FOB THE SAKE OF REPUTATION OUT 
OF THE HOUSE. The fortunes of men in general depend on their 
reputation for justice, sincerity, and uprightness; and this repu- 
tation also depends on the wife, who is acquainted with the most 
familiar circumstances of her husband's life ; therefore if the 
disagreements of their minds should break out into open enmity, 
quarrels, and threats of hatred, and these should be noised 
abroad by the wife and her friends, and by the domestics, they 
would easily be turned into tales of scandal, which would bring 
disgrace and infamy upon the husband's name. To avoid such 
mischiefs, he has no other alternative than either to counterfeit 
affection for his wife, or that they be separated as to house. 

287. XVI. THEY ABE FOB THE SAKE OF VABIOUS FAVOBS 

EXPECTED FBOM THE MABBIED PABTNEB, OB FROM HIS OB HER 
RELATIONS, AND THUS FROM THE FEAR OF LOSING- SUCH FAVOBS. 

This is the case more especially in marriages where the rank and 
condition of the parties are dissimilar, concerning which, see 
above, n. 250 ; as when a man marries a wealthy wite who stores 
up her money in purses, or her treasures in coffers ; and the 
more so if she boldly insists that the husband is bound to support 
the house out of his own estate and income : that hence come 
forced likenesses of conjugial love, is generally known. The 
case is similar where a man marries a wife, whose parents, rela- 
tions, and friends, are in offices of dignity, in lucrative business, 
and in employments with large salaries, who have it in their 
power to better her condition : that this also is a ground of 
counterfeit love, as if it were conjugial, is generally known. 
It is evident that in both cases it is the fear of the loss of the 
above favors that is operative. 

288. XVII. THEY ABE FOR THE SAKE OF HAVING BLBMISHUJS 

EXCUSED, AND THEREBY OF AVOIDING- DISGRACE. There Ere 

several blemishes for which conjugial partners fear disgrace, some 
criminal, some not There are blemishes of the mind and of 
the body slighter than those mentioned in the foregoing chapter 
n 252 and 253, which are causes of separation ; wherefore those 
blemishes are here meant, which, to avoid disgrace, are buried 
in silence by the other married partner. Besides these, in some 
cases there are contingent crimes, which, if made public, are 
subject to heavy penalties ; not to mention a deficiency of that 
ability which the men usually boast of. That excuses of such 
blemishes, in order to avoid disgrace, are the causes of counter- 
236 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 288 291 

feit love and friendship with a married partner, is too evident to 
need further confirmation. 

289. XVIII. THEY ABE FOR THE SAKE OF RECONCILIATION 
That between married partners who have mental disagreements 
from various causes, there subsist alternate distrust and confi- 
dence, alienation and conjunction, yea, dispute and compromise, 
thus reconciliation ; and also that apparent friendships promote 
reconciliation, is well known in the world. There are also 
reconciliations which take place after partings, which are not 
BO alternate and transitory. 

290. XIX. IN CASE FAVOR DOES NOT CEASE WITH THE 

WIFE, WHEN FACULTY CEASES - WITH THE MAN, THERE MAY EXIST 
A FRIENDSHIP RESEMBLING- CONJUGIAL FRIENDSHIP WHEN THE 

PARTIES GROW OLD. The primary cause of the separation of 
minds (animorwn) between married partners is a falling off 01 
favor on the wife's part in consequence of the cessation of ability 
on the husband's part, and thence a falling off of love; for -just 
as heats communicate with each other, so also do colds. I'hat 
from a falling off of "love on the part of each, there ensues a 
cessation of friendship, and also of favor, if not prevented bjr 
the fear of domestic ruin, is evident both from reason and expe- 
rience. In case therefore the man tacitly imputes the caxises to 
himself, and still the wife perseveres in chaste favor towards him, 
there may thence result a friendship, which, since it subsists 
between married partners, appears to resemble conjugial love. 
That a friendship resembling the friendship of that love, may 
subsist between married partners, when old, experience testifies 
from the tranquillity, security, loveliness, and abundant courtesy 
with which they live, communicate, and associate together. 

291. XX. THERE ARE VARIOUS KINDS OF APPARENT LOVB 

AND FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN MA.RRIED PARTNERS, ONE OF WHOM 
IS BROUGHT UNDER THE YOKE, AND THEREFORE IS SUBJECT TO 

THE OTHER. It is no secret in the world at this day, that as 
the first fervor of marriage begins to abate, there arises a rival- 
ship between the parties respecting right and power; respecting 
right, in that according to the statutes of the covenant entered 
into, these is an equality, and each has dignity in the offices ot 
his or her function ; and respecting power, in thafc it is insisted 
on by the men, that in all things relating to the house, supe- 
riority belongs to them, because they are men, and inferiority 
to the women because they are women. Such rivalships, at this 
day familiar, arise from no other source than a want of conscience 
respecting love truly conjugial, and of sensible perception 
respecting the blessedness of that love; in consequence of 
which want, lust takes the place of that love, and counterfeits 
it ; and, on the removal of genuine love, there flows from thier 
lust a grasping for power, in which some are influenced by the 
delight of the love of domineering, which in some is implanted 

23T 



291, 292 CONJTJGIAL LOVE 

by artful women before marriage, and which to some is unknown. 
Where such grasping prevails with* the men, and the various 
turns of rivalsnip terminate in the establishment of their sway, 
they reduce their wives either to become their rightful property, 
or to comply with their arbitrary will, or into a state of slavery, 
every one according to the decree and qualified state of that 
grasping implanted and concealed in himself; but where such 

S rasping prevails with the wives, and the various turns of rival- 
lip terminate in establishing their sway, they reduce their 
husbands either into a state of equality of right with themselves, 
or of compliance with their arbitrary will, or into a state of 
slavery : but as when the wives have obtained the sceptre of 
sway, there remains with them a desire which is a counterfeit ot 
conjugial love, and is restrained both by law and by the fear ot 
legitimate separation, incase they extend their power beyond the 
rule of right into what is contrary thereto, therefore they lead a 
life in consociation with their husbands. But what is the nature 
and quality of the love and friendship between a ruling wife and 
a serving husband, and also between a ruling husband and a 
serving wife, cannot be briefly described ; indeed, if their dif- 
ferences were to be specifically pointed out and enumerated, it 
would occupy several pages ; for they are various and diverse 
various according to the nature of the grasping for power pre- 
valent with the men, and in like manner with the wives ; and 
diverse in regard to the differences subsisting in the men and the 
women ; for such men have no friendship of love but wliat is 
infatuated, and such wives are in the friendship of spurious love 
grounded in lust But by what arts wives procure to themselves 
power over the men, will be shewn in the following article. 

292. XXI. IN THE WORLD THERE ARE INFERNAL MARRIAGES 

BETWEEN PERSONS WHO INTERIORLY ARE THE MOST INVETERATE 
ENEMIES, AND EXTERIORLY ARE AS THE CLOSEST FRIENDS. I 

am indeed forbidden by the wives of this sort, in the spiritual 
world, to present such marriages to public view ; for they are 
afraid lest their art of obtaining power over the men should at 
the same time be divulged, which yet they are exceedingly 
desirous to have concealed : but as I am urged by the men in 
that world to expose the causes of the intestine hatred and as it 
were fury excited in their hearts against their wives, in conse* 
quence of their clandestine arts, I shall be content with adducing 
the foil owing particulars. The men said, that unwittingly they- 
contracted a terrible dread of their wives, in consequence of 
which they were constrained to obey their decisions in the most 
abject manner, and be at their beck more than the vilest servants, 
so that they lost all life and spirit ; and that this was the case 
not only with those who were in inferior stations of life, but 
also with those who were advanced in high dignities, yea with 
brave and famous generals : they also said, that after they had 
238 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 293 

contracted this dread, they could not help on every occasion 
expressing themselves to their wives in a friendly manner, and 
doing what was agreeable to their humors, although they cher- 
ished in their hearts a deadly hatred against them ; and further, 
that their wives still behaved courteously to them both in word 
and deed, and complaisantly attended to some of their requests. 
Now ,as the men themselves greatly wondered, whence such an 
antipathy could arise in their internals, and such an apparent 
sympathy in their externals, they examined into the causes 
thereof from some women who were acquainted with the above 
secret art. From this source of information they learned, that 
women (mulieres) are skilled in a knowledge which they conceal 
deeply in their own minds, whereby, if they be so disposed, they 
can subject the men to the yoke of their authority ; and that 
this is effected in the case of ignorant wives, sometimes by 
alternate quarrel and kindness, sometimes by harsh and unplea- 
sant looks, and sometimes by other means ; but in the case of 
polite wives, by urgent and persevering petitions, and by obsti- 
nate resistance to their husbands in case they suffer hardships 
f:om them, insisting on their right of equality by law, in conse- 
quence of which they are firm and resolute in their purpose ; yea, 
insisting that if they should be turned out of the house, they 
would return at their pleasure, and would be urgent as before ; 
for they know that the men by their nature cannot resist the 
positive tempers of their wives but that after compliance they 
submit themselves to their disposal ; and that in this case the 
wives make a show of all kinds of civility and tenderness to their 
husbands subjected to their sway. The genuine cause of the 
dominion which the wives obtain by this cunning is, that the 
man acts from the understanding and the woman from the will, 
and that the will can persist, but not so the understanding. I 
have been told, that the worst of this sort of women, who are 
altogether a prey to the desire of dominion, can remain firm in 
their positive humors even to the last struggle for lire. I have 
also Heard the excuses pleaded by such women (mulieres) for 
entering upon the exercise of this art ; in which they urged that 
they would not have done so unless they had foreseen supreme 
contempt and future rejection, and consequent ruin on their 
part, if they should be subdued by their husbands : and that thus 
they had taken up these their arms from necessity. To this 
excuse they add this admonition for the men ; to leave their 
wives their own rights, and while they are in alternations of cold, 
not to consider them as beneath their maid-servants : they said 
also that several of their sex, from their natural timidity^ are 
not in a state of exercising the above art ; but I added, from 
their natural modesty. From the above consideraticns it may 
HOW be known what is meant by infernal marriages in the world 

239 



293 292 CONJTOIAL LOVE 

between persons who interiorly are the most inveterate enemies, 

and exteriorly are like the most attached friends. 

# * # # * * 

293. To the above I will add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS. 
FIRST. Some time ago as I was looking through a window to 
the east, I saw seven women sitting in a garden of roses at a cer- 
tain fountain, and drinking the water. I strained my eye-sight 
greatly to see what they were doing, and this effort of mine 
affected them ; wherefore one of them beckoned me, and I im- 
mediately quitted the house and came to them. "When 1 joined 
them, I courteously inquired whence they were. They said, 
" We are wives, and are here conversing respecting the delights 
of eonjugial love, and from much consideration we conclude, that 
til-ay are also the delights of wisdom." This answer so delighted 
my mind (ammum\ that I seemed to be in the spirit, and thence 
in perception more interior and more enlightened than on any 
former occasion ; wherefore I said to them, " Give me leave to 
propose a few questions respecting those satisfactions*" On their 
consenting, I asked, " How do you wives know that the delightn 
of conjugial love are the same as the delights of wisdom ?" 
They replied, " We know it from the correspondence of our hus- 
bands' wisdom with onr own delights of conjugial love ; for the de- 
lights of this love with ourselves are exalted and diminished and 
altogether qualified, according to the wisdom of our husbands," 
On hearing this, I said, " I know that you are affected by the agree- 
able conversation of your husbands and their cheerfulness of 
mind, and that you derive thence a bosom delight; but I am 
surprised to hear you say, that their wisdom produces this effect ; 
but tell me what is wisdom, and what wisdom [produces this 
effect]?" To this the wives indignantly replied, " Do you suppose 
that we do not know what wisdom is, and what wisdom [pro- 
duces that effect], when yet we are continually reflecting upon it 
as in our husbands, and learn it daily from their mouths ? For 
we wives think of the state of our husbands from morning to 
evening; there is scarcely an hour in the day, in which our 
intuitive thought is altogether withdrawn from tliem, or is absent ; 
on the other hand, our husbands think very little in the day 
respecting our state ; hence we know what wisdom of theirs it is 
that gives us delight. Our husbands call that wisdom spiritual 
rational, and spiritual moral. Spiritual rational wisdom, they 
saj r , is of the understanding and knowledges, and spiritual moral 
wisdom of the will and life ; but these they join together and 
make a one, and insist that the satisfactions of this wisdom are 
transferred from their minds into the delights in our bosoms, and 
from our bosoms into theirs, and thus return to wisdom their 
origin." I then asked, " Do you know anything more respect- 
ing the wisdom of your husbands which gives you delight?" 

240 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 293 

They said, "We do. There is spiritual wisdom, and thence 
rational and moral wisdom. Spiritual wisdom is to acknowledge 
the Lord the Saviour as the God of heaven and earth, and from 
Him to procure the truths of the church, which is effected by 
means of the Word and of preachings derived therefrom, whence 
comes spiritual rationality ; and from Him to live according to 
those truths, whence comes spiritual morality. These two our 
husbands call the wisdom which in general operates to produce 
love truly conjugial. We have heard from them also that the 
reason^ of this is, because, by means of that wisdom, the inte- 
riors of their minds and thence of their bodies are opened, whence 
there exists a free passage from first principles even to last for 
the stream of love ; on the flow, sufficiency, and virtue of which 
conjugial love depends and lives. The spiritual rational and 
moral wisdom of our husbands, specifically in regard to marriage, 
has for its end and object to love the wife alone, and to put awav 
all concupiscence for other women ; and so far as this is effected, 
BO far that love is exalted as to degree, and perfected as to 
quality ; and also so far we feel more distinctly and exquisitely 
the delights in ourselves corresponding to the delights of the 
affections and the satisfactions of the thoughts of our husbands." 
I Inquired afterwards, whether they knew how communication is 
effected. They said, " In all conjunction by love there must be 
action, reception, and reaction. The delicious state of our love 
is acting or action, the state of the wisdom of our husbands is 
recipient or reception, and also is reacting or reaction according 
to perception ; and this reaction we perceive with delights in the 
breast according to the state continually expanded and prepared 
to receive fhose things which in any manner agree with the 
virtue belonging to our husbands, thus also with the extreme 
state of love belonging to ourselves, and which thence proceed." 
They said further, "Take heed lest by the delights which we 
have mentioned, you understand the ultimated delights of that 
love : of these we never speak, but of our bosom delights, which 
always correspond with the state of the wisdom of our husbands.'' 
After this there appeared at a distance as it were a dove flying 
with the leaf of a tree in its mouth: biit as it approached, 
instead of a dove I saw it was a little boy with a paper in hi? 
hand : on coming; to us he held it out to me, and said, " Read 
it before these Maidens of the fountain." I then read as follows, 
" Tell the inhabitants of your earth, that there is a love truly 
conjugial having myriads of delights, scarce any of which are 
as yet known to the world ; but they will be known, when tho 
church betroths herself to her Lord, and is married." I then 
asked, "Why did the little boy call you Maidens of the fountain I J| 
They replied, "We are'called mafdens when we sit at this foun- 
tain ; because we are affections of the truths of the wisdom of 
our husbands, and the affection of truth is called a maiden ; a 

241 



J93, 294 OOKJUGIAI LOVE 

fountain also signifies the true of wisdom, and the bed of roses, 
on which we sit, the delights thereof." Then one of the seven 
wove a garland of roses, and sprinkled it with water of the 
fountain, and placed it on the boy's cap round his little head, 
and said, "Eeceive the delights of intelligence; know .that a 
cap signifies intelligence ; and a garland from this rose-bed de- 
lights/' The boy thus decorated then departed, and again 
appeared a distance like a flying dove, but now with a coronet 
on his, head. 

291i' THE SECOND MEMORABLE BELATION. After some days 
I again saw the seven wives in a garden of roses, but not in trie 
same as before. Its magnificence was such as I had never before 
seen : it was round, and the roses in it formed as it were a rair 
bow. The roses or flowers of a purple color formed its outer- 
most circle, others of a yellow golden color formed the next 
interior circle, within this were others of a bright blue, and the 
inmost of a shining green ; and within this rainbow rose-bed was 
a small lake of limpid water. These seven wives, who were 
called the Maidens of the fountain, as they were sitting there 
seeing me again at the window, called me to them ; and when 
I was come' they said, "Did you ever see anything more beau- 
tiful upon the earth ?" I replied, "Never." They then said, 
'* Such scenery is created instantaneously by the Lord, and re- 
presents something new on the earth ; for every thing created by 
4 he Lord is representative : but what is this 1 tell, if you can : 
we say it is the delights of conjugial love." On hearing this, J 
said, u What ! the delights of conjugial love, respecting which 
you before conversed with so much wisdom and eloquence I 
After I had left you, I related your conversation to some wives 
in our country, and said, * I now know from instruction that you 
have bosom delights arising from your conjugial love, which you 
can communicate to your husbands according to their wisdom, 
and that on this account you look at your husbands with the eyes 
of your spirit from morning to evening, and study to bend and 
draw their minds (animos) to become wise, to the end that you 
may secure those delights.' I mentioned also that by wisdom 
you understand spiritual rational and moral wisdom, and in re- 
gard to marriage,* the wisdom to love the wife alone, and to put 
away all concupiscence for other women : but to these things tne 
wives of our country answered with laughter, saying, " what is 
all tins but mere idle talk ? "We do not know what conjugia 
love is. If our husbands possess any portion of it, still we do 
not ; whence then come its delights to us ? yea, in regard to 
wh&t you call ultimate delights, we at times refuse them with 
violence, for they are unpleasant to us, almost like violations ; 
and you will sec, if you attend to it, na sign of such love in our 
faces: wherefore you are trifling or jesting, if you also assert, 
with those seven wives, that we think of our husbands from 
242 



JUTD ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 29* 

morning to evening, and continually attend to their will and 
pleasure in order to catch from them such delights. 5 I have re- 
tained thus n uch of what they said, that I might relate it to you ; 
since it is repugnant, and also in manifest contradiction, to what 
I heard from you n^ar the fountain, and which 1 so greedily 
imbibed and believed," To this the wives sitting in the rose 
garden replied, "Friend, you know not the wisdom and prudence 
of wives ; for they totally hide it from the men, and for no other 
end than that they may be loved ; for every man who is not spi- 
ritually but only naturally rational and moral, is cold towards 
his wife; and the cold lies concealed in his inmost principles. 
This is exquisitely and acutely observed by a wise and prudent 
wife ; who so far conceals her conjugial love, and withdraws it 
into her bosom, and there hides it so deeply that it does not at 
all appear in her face, in the tone of her voice, or in her be- 
behaviour. The reason of this is, because so far as it appears, so 
far the conjugial cold of the man diffuses itself from the inmost 
principles of his mind, where it resides, into its ultimates, and 
occasions in the body a total coldness, and a consequent endea- 
vour to separate from bed and chamber/' I then asked, "Whence 
arises that which you call conjugial cold ?" They replied, " From 
the insanity of the men in regard to spiritual things ; and every 
one who is insane in regard to spiritual things, in his inmost 
principles is cold towards his wife, and warm towards harlots ; 
and since conjugial love and adulterous love are opposite to each 
other; it follows that conjugial love becomes cold when illicit love 
is warm ; and when cold prevails with the man, he cannot endure 
any sense of love, arid thus not any allusion thereto, from his 
wife ; therefore the wife so wisely and prudently conceals that 
love ; and so far as she conceals it by denying and refusing it, so 
far the man is cherished and recruited by the influent meretricious 
sphere. Hence it is, that the wife of such a man has no bosoin 
delights such as we have, but only pleasures, which, on the part 
of the man, ought to be called the pleasures of insanity, be- 
cause they are the pleasures of illicit love. Every chaste wife 
loves her husband, even if he be unchaste j but since wisdom is 
alone recipient of that love, therefore she exerts all her endea* 
vours to turn his insanity into wisdom, that is, to prevent his 
lusting after other wo men besides herself. This she does by a 
thDusand methods, being particularly cautions lest any of them 
should be discovered by the man ; for she is well aware that love 
cannot be forced, but that it is insinuated in freedom ; wherefore 
it is given to women to know from the sight, the hearing, and 
the touch, every state of the mind of their husbands; but on. 
tJie other hand it is not given to the men to know any state of 
the mind of their wives. A chaste wife can look at her husband 
with au austere countenance, accost him with a harsh voice, and 
also be angry and quarrel, and yet in her heart cherish a soft aud 

243 



S94r, 295 CONJUttlAJL LOVE 

tender Jove towards him ; bnt such anger and dissimulation hare 
for their end wisdom, and thereby the reception of love with the 
husband : as is manifest from the consideration, that she can be 
reconciled in an instant. Besides, wives use such means of con- 
cealing the love implanted in their inmost heart, with a view to 
prevent conjugial cold bursting forth with the man, and extin- 
guishing the fire of his adulterous heat, and thus converting him 
from green wood into a dry stick." When the seven wives had 
expressed these and many more similar sentiments, their husbands 
came with clusters of grapes in their hands, some of which were 
of a delicate, and some of a disagreeable flavor ; upon which 
the wives said, "Why have you also brought bad or wild grapes?" 
The husbands replied, " Because we perceived in our souls, with 
which yours are united, that you were conversing with that man 
respecting love truly conjugial, that its delights are the delights 
of wisdom, and also respecting adulterous love, that its delights are 
the pleasures of insanity. The latter are the disagreable or wild 
grapes ; the former are those of delicate flavor. 35 They confirmed 
what their wives had said, and added that, " in externals, the 
pleasures of insanity appear like the delights of wisdom, but not 
BO in internals ; just like the good and bad grapes which we have 
brought ; for both the chaste and the unchaste have similar wis- 
dom in externals, but altogether dissimilar in internals." After 
this the little boy came again with a piece of paper in his hand, 
and held it out to me, saying, " Bead this ;" and I read as 
follows; "Know that the delights of conjugial love ascend to 
the highest heaven, and both in the way thither and also there, 
unite with the delights of all heavenly loves, and thereby enter 
into thtiir happiness, which endures for ever ; because the delights 
of that love are also the delights of wisdom : and know also, 
that the oleasures of illicit love descend even to the lowest hell, 
and, both in the way thither and also there, unite with the 
pleasures of all infernal loves, and thereby enter into their un- 
happiness, which consists in the wretchedness of all heart-delights ; 
because the pleasures of that love are the pleasures of insanity." 
After this the husbands departed with their wives, and accom- 
panied the little boy as far as to the way of his ascent into hea- 
ven ; and they knew that the society from which he was sent was 
a society of tne new heaven, with which the new church in the 
world \4ili be conjoined. 



ON BETBOTHINGS AND NUPTIALS 

295. THE subject of betrothings and nuptials, and also of 
the rites and ceremonies attending them, is here treated of prin- 
cipally from the reason of the understanding; for the object of 
244 



Aim ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 298 

tins book is that the reader may see truths rationally, and thereby 
give his consent, for thus his spirit is convinced ; and those 
things in which the spirit is convinced, obtain a place above 
those which, without consulting reason, enter from authority 
and the faith of authority ; for the latter enter the head no 
further than into the memory, and there mix themselves with 
fallacies and falses ; thus they are beneath the rational things of 
the understanding. From these any one may seem to converse 
rationally, but he will converse preposterously ; for in such case 
he thinks as a crab walks, the sight following the tail : it is 
otherwise if he thinks from the understanding ; for then the 
rational sight selects from the memory whatever is suitable, 
whereby it confirms truth viewed in itself. This is the reason 
why in this chapter several particulars are adduced which are 
established customs, as that the right of choice belongs to the 
men, that parents ought to be consulted, that pledges are to be 
given, that the conjugial covenant is to be settled previous to 
the nuptials, that it ought to be performed by a priest, also that 
the nuptials ought to be celebrated ; besides several other par- 
ticulars, which are here mentioned in order that every one may 
rationally see that such things are assigned to conjugial love, as 
requisite to pi'ompte and complete it. The articles into which 
this section is divided are the following ; I. The right of choice 
belongs to the man, and not to the woman. II. The man ought 
to court and intreat the woman respecting marriage with him^ 
and not the woman the man. III. The woman ought to consult 
her parents, or those who are in the place of parents^ and then 
deliberate with herself, before she consents. I v . After a declara- 
tion of consent^ pledges are to be given.' V. Consent is to be 
secure and estabhshedby solemn betrothing. VI. By betrothing, 
each party is prepared for conjugial love. VII. Ey betrothing ', 
the mind of the one is united to the mind of the other, so as to 
effect a marriage of the spirit previous to a marriage ofthebody. 
V III. This is the case withthose who think chastely of marriages: 
but it is otherwise with those who think unchastely of them. I3L 
Within the time of betrothing, it is not allowable to be connected 
corporeally. X. When the time of betrothing is completed^ the 
nuptials ought to taTce place* XI. Previous to the celebration of 
the nuptials ) the conjiwial covenant is to be ratified in the presence 
of witnesses. XII. The marriage is to be consecrated by a priest. 
Alii, The nuptials are to be celebrated with festivity. XIV. 
After the nuptials, the marriage of the spirit is made also the 
marriage of fhe body, and thereby a full marriage. XV. Such 
is the order of Conjugial love with its modes from its first heat to 
itsfi/rst torch. XTVL Conjugial love precipitated without order 
and the modes thereof ^ bivrns up the marrows and is consumed. 
XVII. The states of the minds of each of the parties proceeding 
in successive order, flow into the state of marriage ; nevertheless 

245 



295 297 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

m one manner with the spiritual andin another with the natural. 
XYII1 There are successive and simultaneous orders, and the 
latter is from the former and according to it. We proceed to an 
explanation of each article. 

296. THE EIGHT OF CHOICE BELONGS TO THE MAN, AND 
NOT TO THE WOMAN. This is because the man is born to be 
understanding, but the woman to be love ; also because with the 
men there generally prevails a love of the sex, but with the 
women a love of one of the sex ; and likewise because it i's not 
unbecoming for men to speak openly about love, as it is for 
women ; nevertheless women have the right of selecting one of 
their suitors. In regard to the first reason, that the right of 
choice belongs to the men, because they are born to understand- 
ing, it is grounded in the consideration that the understanding 
tan examine agreements and disagreements, and distinguish 
them, and from judgement choose that which is suitable : it is 
otherwise with the women, because they are born to love, and 
therefore have no such discrimination ; and consequently their 
determinations to marriage would proceed only from the inclina- 
tions of their love; if they have the skill of distinguishing 
between men and men, still their love is influenced by appear- 
ances. In regard to the other reason, that the right of choice 
belongs to the men, and not to the women, because with men 
there generally prevails a love of the sex, and with women a love 
of one of the sex, it is grounded in the consideration, that 
those in whom a love of the sex prevails, can freely look around 
and also determine : it is otherwise with women, in whom is 
implanted a love for one of the sex. If you wish for a proof of 
this, ask, if you please, the men you meet, what their sentiments 
are respecting monogamical and polygamical unions ; and you 
will seldom meet one who vnll not reply in favor of the poly- 
gamical ; and this also is a love of the sex : but ask the women 
their sentiments on the subject, and almost all, except the vilest 
of the sex, will reject polygamioal unions ; from which considera- 
tion it follows, that with the women there prevails a. love of one 
of the sex, thus conjugal love. In regard to the third reason, 
that it is not unbecoming for men to speak openly about love, 
whereas it is for women, it is self-evident ; hence also it follows, 

hat declaration belongs to the men, and therefore so does choice. 
That women have the right of selecting in regard to their suitors, 
is well known ; but this species of selection is confined and 
limited, whereas that of the men is extended and unlimited. 

297. II. THE MAN OUGHT TO OOTJBT AND IOTRKAT THE 

WOMAN RESPECTING MABBIAGTS WITH HIM, AND NOT THE WOMAN 

THE MAN. This naturally follows the right of choice ; and 
besides, to court and intreat women respecting marriage is in 
itself honorable and becoming for men, but not for women. If 
women were to court and entreat the men, they would not only 
246 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 297 200 

be blamed, but, after intreaty, they would be reputed as vile, or 
after marriage as libidinous, with whom there wouM be no asso- 
ciation but what was cold and fastidious; wherefore marriages 
would thereby be converted into tragic scenes. Wives also take 
it as a compliment to have it said of them, that being conquered 
as it were, they yielded to the pressing intreaties of the men. 
Who does not foresee, that if the women courted the men, they 
would seldom be accepted? They would either be indignantly 
rejected, or be enticed to lasciviousness, and also would dishonor 
their modesty. Moreover, as was shewn above, the men have 
not any innate love of the sex ; and without love there is no 
interior pleasantness of life: wherefore to exalt theirlife by that 
love, it is incumbent on the men to compliment the women ; 
courting and intreating them with civility, courtesy, and humility, 
respecting this sweet addition to their life. The superior come- 
liness of the female countenance, person, and manners, above 
tlrat of the men, adds itself as a proper object of desire. 

298. III. THE WOMAN OUGHT TO CONSULT HER PARENTS, 

OR THOSE WHO ARE IN THE PLACE OF PARENTS, AND THEN 
DELIBERATE WITH HERSELF, BEFORE SHE CONSENTS. The reaSOQ 

why parents are to be consulted is, because they deliberate from 
judgement, knowledge, and love ; from^W^mm^because they 
are in an advanced age, which excels in judgement, and discerns 
what is suitable and unsuitable : from knowledge, in respect to 
both the suitor and their daughter; in respect to the suitor they 
procure information, and in respect to their daughter they already 
know ; wherefore they conclude respecting both with united dis- 
cernment : from love, because to consult the good of their 
daughter, and to provide for her establishment, is also to consult 
and provide for their own and for themselves. 

299. The case would be altogether different, if the daughter 
consents of herself to her urgent suitor, without consulting her 
parents, or those who are in their place; for she cannot from 
judgement, knowledge, and love, make a right estimate of the 
matter which so deeply concerns her future welfare : she cannot 
fromjitdgement, because she is as yet in ignorance as to conjugial 
life, and riot in a state of comparing reasons, and discovering 
the morals of men from their particular tempers; nor from 
knowledge, because she knows few things beyond the domestic 
concerns of her parents and of some of her companions ; and is 
unqualified to examine into such things as relate to the family 
and property of her suitor : nor fromlove, because with daughter* 
in their first marriageable age, and also afterwards, this is Ted by 
the concupiscences originating in the senses, and not as yet by 
the desires originating in a refined mind. The daughte-r ought 
nevertheless to deliberate on the matter with herself, before she 
consents, lest she should ba led against her will to form a coa- 

247 



299 301 CONJUGIAI TX>VE 

nection with a man wliom she does not love ; for by so doing, 
consent on her part would be wanting ; and jet it is consent that 
constitutes marriage, and initiates the spirit into conjugal love; 
and consent against the will, or extorted, does not initiate the 
spirit, although it may the body ; and thus it converts chastity, 
which resides in the spirit, into lust ; whereby conjngial love in 
its first warmth is vitiated. 

800. IV. AFTEB A DECLARATION OF CONSENT, PLEDGES ARB 
TO BE GIVEN. By pledges we mean presents, which, after con- 
sent, are confirmations, testifications, first favors, and gladnesses. 
Those presents are confirmations^ because they are certificates of 
consent on each side ; wherefore, when two parties consent to 
anything, it is customary to say, " Give me"a token ;" and of 
two, who have entered into a marriage-engagement, and have 
secured it by presents, that they are pledged, thus confirmed. 
They are testifications^ because those pledges are continual visible 
witnesses of mutual love ; hence also they are memorials thereof; 
especially if they be rings, perfume-bottles or boxes, and ribbons, 
which are worn in sight. In such things there is a sort of 
representative image of the minds (animornm) of the bridegroom 
and the bride. Those pledges sure first favors, because conjugial 
love engages for itself everlasting favor ; whereof those gifts are 
the first fruits. That they are the gladnesses of love, is well 
known, for the mind is exhilarated at the sight of them ; and 
because love is in them, those favors are dearer and more precious 
than any other gifts, it being as if their hearts were in them. 
As those pledges are securities of conjugial love, therefore pre- 
sents after consent were in use with the ancients ; and after 
accepting such presents the parties were declared to be bride- 
groom and bride. But it is to be observed that it is at the 
pleasure of the parties to bestow those presents either before or 
after the act of betrothing ; if before, they are confirmations and 
testifications of consent to betrothing; if after it, they are also 
confirmations and testifications of consent to the nuptial tie. 

301. V. CONSENT is TO BE SECURED AND ESTABLISHED BY 
SOLEMN BETKOTHING. The reasons for betrothings are these : 1. 
That after betrothing the souls of the two parties may mutually 
incline towards each other. 2. That the universal love for the 
sex may be determined to one of the sex. 3. That the interior 
affections may be mutually known, and by applications in the 
internal cheerfulness of love, may be conjoined. 4, That the 
spirits of both parties may enter into marriage, and be more and 
more consociated. 4 That thereby conjugial love may advance 
regularly from its first warmth even to the nuptial fiame. Con- 
sequently. 6. That conjugial love may advance and grow up in 
iust order from its spiritual origin. The state of betrothing may 
be compared to the state of spring before summer ; and the 
internal pleasantness of that state to the flowering of trees before 
248 



AJSD ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 301 304 

fructification. As the beginning and progressions of conjugial 
love proceed in order for the sake of their influx into the effective 
love, which commences at the nuptials, therefore, there are ako 
betrothings in the heavens. 

302. Y I. BY BETROTHING BACH PARTY IS PREPARED FOB- 

CONJUGIAL LOVE. That the mind or spirit of one of the parties 
is by betrothing prepared for union with the mind or spirit of 
the other, or what is the same, that the love of the one is pre- 
pared for union with the love of the other, appears from the 
arguments just adduced. Besides which it is to be noted, that 
on love truly conjngial is inscribed this order, that it ascends 
and descends ; it ascends from its first heat progressively upwards 
towards the souls of the parties, with an endeavour to effect their 
conjunction, and this by continual interior openings of their 
minds ; and there is no love which strives more intensely to effect 
such openings, or which is more powerful and expert in opening 
the interiors of minds, than conjugial love ; for the soul of each 
of the parties intends this : but at the same moments in which 
that love ascends towards the soul, it descends also towards the 
body, and thereby clothes itselfl It is however to be observed, 
that conjugial love is such in its descent as it is in the height to 
which it ascends : if it ascends high, it descends chaste ; but if 
not, it descends unchaste : the reason of this is, because the 
lower principles of the mind are unchaste, but its higher are 
chaste ; for the lower principles of the mind adhere to the body, 
but the higher separate themselves from them : but on this 
subject see further particulars below, n. 305. Fz*om these few 
considerations it may appear, that, by betrothing, the mind of 
each of the parties is prepared for conjugial love, although in a 
different manner according to the affections. 

303. VII. BY BETROTHING THE MIND OF ONE IS UNITED TO 
THE MIND OF THE OTHER, SO AS TO EFFECT A MARRIAGE OF THE 
SPIRIT, PREVIOUS TO A MARRIAGE OF THE BODY. As this follows 

of consequence from what was said above, n. 301, 302, we shall 
pass it by, without adducing any further confirmations from 
reason. 

304. YIIL THIS is THE CASE WITH THOSE WHO THINK 

CHASTELY OF MARRIAGES J BUT IT. IS OTHERWISE WITH THOSE WHO 

THINK UNOHASTELY OF THEM. With the chaste, that is, with 
those who think religiously of marriages, the marriage of the 
spirit precedes, and that of the body is subsequent; and these 
are those with whom love ascends towards the soul, and from its 
height thence descends ; concerning whom see above, n. 302. 
The souls of such separate themselves from the unlimited love for 
the sex, and devote themselves to one, with whom they look for 
an everlasting and eternal union and its increasing blessednesses, 
as the cherishers of the hope which continually recreates theii 
mind : but it is quite otherwise with the unchaste, that is, with 

248 



804:, 305 CONJTTGIAL LOVE 

those who do not think religiously of marriages and their holl 
ness. With these there is a-* marriage of the body, but not of 
the spirit : if, during the state of betrothment, there be any 
appearance of a marriage of the spirit, still, if it ascends by an 
elevation of the thoughts concerning it, it nevertheless falls back 
again to the concupiscences which arise from the flesh in the 
will ; and thus from the unchaste principles therein it precipitates 
itself into the body, and defiles the ultimates of its love with an 
alluring ardor ; and as, in consequence of this ardor, it was in 
the beginning all on fire, so its fire suddenly goes out, and passes 
off into the cold of winter ; whence the failing [of power] is 
accelerated. The state of betrothing with such scarcely answers 
any other purpose, than that they may fill their concupiscences 
with lasciviousness, and thereby contaminate the conjugial prin- 
ciple of love. 

305. IX. WITHIN THE TIME OF BETBOTHING IT is HOT 

ALLOWABLE TO BE CONNECTED COKPOKEALLY ; for thus the 01'der 

which is inscribed on conjugial love, perishes. For in human 
minds there are three regions, of which the highest is called the 
celestial, the middle the spiritual, and the lowest the natural. 
In this lowest man is born ; but he ascends into the next above 
it, the spiritual, by a life according to the truths of religion, 
and into the highest by the marriage of love and wisdom. In 
the lowest or natural region, reside all the concupiscences of evil 
and lasciviousness ; but in the superior or spiritual region, there 
are no concupiscences of evil and lasciviousness ; ior man is 
introduced into this region by the Lord, when he is re-born ; but 
in the supreme or celestial region, there is conjugial chastity in 
its love : into this region a man is elevated by the love of uses ; 
and as the most excellent uses are from marriages, he is elevated 
into it by love truly conjugial. From these few considerations, 
it may be seen that conjugial love, from the first beginnings of 
its warmth, is to be elevated out of the lowest region into a 
superior region, that it may become chaste, and that thereby 
from a chaste principle it may be let down through the middle 
and lowest regions into the body ; and when this is the case, this 
lowest region is purified from all that is unchaste by this de- 
scending chaste principle : hence the ultimate of that love be- 
comes also chaste. Now if the successive order of this love is 
precipitated by connections of the body before their time, it fol- 
lows, that the man acts from the lowest region, which is by 
birth unchaste ; and it is well known, that hence commences and 
arises cold in regard to marriage, and disdainful neglect in regard 
to a married partner. Nevertheless events of various kinds take 
place in consequence of hasty connections ; also in consequence 
of too long a delay, and too quick a hastening, of the time of 
betrothing; but these, from their number and variety, can hardly 
be adduced. 
250 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 306, 807 

306 X. WHEN THE TIME OF BETROTHING is COMPLETED, 
THE NUPTIALS OUGHT TO TAKE PLACE. There are some cus 
tomarv rites which are merely formal, and others which at the 
same time are also essential : among the latter are nuptials ; and 
that they are to be reckoned among essentials, which are to be 
manifested in the customary way, and to be formally celebrated, 
is confirmed by the following reasons : 1. That nuptials consti- 
tute the end of the foregoing state, into which the parties were 
introduced by betrothing, which principally was a state of the 
spirit, and the beginning of the following state, into which they 
are to be introduced by marriage, which is a state of the spirit 
and body together; for the spirit then enters into the body, and 
there becomes active: wherefore on that day the parties put off 
the state and also the name of bridegroom and bride, and put on 
the state and name of married partners and consorts. 2. That 
nuptials are an introduction and entrance into a new state, which 
is that a maiden becomes a wife, and a young man a husband, 
and both one flesh ; and this is effected while love by ultimates 
unites them. That marriage actually changes a maiden into a 
wife, and a young man into a husband, was proved in the former 
part of this work ; also that marriage unites two into one human 
form, so that they are no longer two but one flesh. 3. That 
nuptials are the commencement of an entire separation of the 
love of the sex from conjugial love, which is effected while, by a 
full liberty of connection, the knot is tied by which the love of 
the one is devoted to the love of the other. 4. It appears as if 
nuptials were merely an interval between those two states, 
and thus that they are mere formalities which may be omitted : 
but still there is also in them this essential, that the new state 
above-mentioned is then to be entered upon from covenant, and 
that the consent of the parties is to be declared in the presence 
of witnesses, and also to be consecrated by a priest ; besides other 
particulars which establish it. As nuptials contain in them essen- 
tials, and as marriage is not legitimate till after their celebra- 
tion, therefore also nuptials are celebrated in the heavens ; see 
above, n. 21, and also, n. 27 41. 

307. XL PREVIOUS TO. THE CELEBRATION OF THE NUP- 
TIALS, THE CONJUGIAL COVENANT IS TO BE RATIFIED IN THE 

PRESENCE OF WITNESSES. It is expedient that the conjugial 
covenant be ratified before the nuptials are celebrated, in order 
that the statutes and laws of love truly conjugial may be known, 
and that they may be remembered after the nuptials ; also that 
the minds of the parties may be bound to just marriage : for after 
some introductory circumstances of marriage, the state which 
preceded betrothing returns at times, in which state remem- 
brance fails and forgetfulness of the ratified covenant ensues ; 
yea, it may be altogether effaced by the allurements of the 
unchaste to criminality: and if it is then recalled into the 

251 



307 310 OONJTTGIAL LOVE 

memory, it is reviled: but to preven; these transgressions, 
society has taken upon itself the protection of that covenant, 
and has denounced penalties on the breakers of it. In a word, 
the ante-nuptial covenant manifests and establishes the sacred 
decrees of love truly conjugial, and binds libertines to the obser- 
vance of them. Moreover, by this covenant, the right of pro- 
pagating children, and also tlie right of ^ the children to inherit 
the goods of their parents, become legitimate. 

308. XII. MARRIAGE is TO BE CONSECRATED BY A PSIEST, 
The reason of this is, because marriages, considered in them- 
selves, are spiritual, and thence holy; for they descend from the 
heavenly marriage of good and truth, and things conjugial 
correspond to the divine marriage of the Lord and the church ; 
and hence they are from the Lord himself, and according to tho 
state of the church with the contracting parties. Now, as the 
ecclesiastical order on the earth administer the things which re- 
late to the Lord's priestly character, that IP, to his love, and 
thus also those which relate to blessing, it is expedient that 
marriages be consecrated by his ministers ; and as they are 
then the chief witnesses, it is expedient that the consent of the 
parties to the covenant be also heard, accepted, confirmed, and 
thereby established by them. 

309. XIII. THE NUPTIALS ARE TO BE CELEBRATED WITH 
FESTIVITY. The reasons are, because ante-nuptial love, which 
was that of the bridegroom and the bride, on this occasion de- 
scends into their hearts, and spreading itself thence in every 
direction into all parts of the body, the delights of marriage are 
made sensible, whereby the minds of the parties are led to fes- 
tive thoughts and also let loose to festivities so far as is allowa- 
ble and becoming ; to favor which, it is expedient that the 
iestivities of their minds be indulged in company, and they them- 
nelves be thereby introduced into the joys of conjugial love. 

310. XIV. AFTER THE NUPTIALS, THE MARRIAQ-E OF THE 

SPIRIT IS MADE ALSO THE MARRIAGE OF THE BODY, AND 

THEREBY A Fuix MARRIAGE. All things which a man does in the 
body, flow in from his spirit ; for it is well known that the mouth 
does not speak of itself, but that it is the thinking principle of 
the mind which speaks by it ; also that the hands do not act and 
the feet walk of themselves, but that it is the will of the mind 
which performs those operations by them ; consequently, that 
the mind speaks and acts by its organs in the body : hence it is 
evident, that such as the mind is, such are the speech of the 
mouth and the actions of the body. From these premises it 
follows as a conclusion that the mind, by a continual influx, 
arranges the body so that it may act similarly and simultaneously 
with itself; wherefore the bodies of men viewed interiorly are 
merely forms of their minds exteriorly organized to effect the 
purposes of the soul These things are premised, in order that 
252 



AN1 ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 310, 311 

it may be perceived why the minds or spirits are first to be 
united as by marriage, before they are also further united in the 
body $ namely, that while the marriages become of the body, 
they may also be marriages of the spirit ; consequently, that 
married partners may mutually love each other from the spirit, 
and thence from the body. From this ground let us now take a 
view of marriage. When conjugial love unites the minds of two 
persons, and forms them into a marriage, in such case it also 
unites and forms their bodies into a marriage ; for, as we have 
said, the form of the mind is also interiorly the form of the 
body ; only with this difference, that the latter form is outwardly 
organized to effect that to which the interior form of the body is 
determined by the mind. But the mind formed from conjugial 
love is not only interiorly in the whole body, round about in 
ever/ part, but moreover is interiorly in the organs appropriated 
to generation, which in their region are situated beneath the 
other regions of the body, and in which are terminated the forms 
of the mind with those who are united in conjugial love: con 
sequently the affections and thoughts of their minds are deter- 
mined thither ; and the activities of such minds differ in this 
respect from the activities of minds arising from other loves, 
that the latter loves do not reach thither. The conclusion 
resulting from these considerations is, that such asconjugial love 
is in the minds or spirits of two persons, such is it interiorly in 
those its organs. iJut it is sell-evident that a marriage of the 
spirit after the nuptials becomes also a marriage of the body, 
thus a full marriage, consequently, if a marriage in the spirit is 
chaste, and partakes of the sanctity of marriage, it is chaste also, 
and partakes of its sanctity, when it is in its fulness in the body ; 
and the case is reversed if a marriage in the spirit is unchaste. 

811. XV. SUCH IS THE OEDER OF COtfJUaiAL LOVE WITH 
ITS MODES FKOM ITS FIRST HEAT TO ITS FJORST TOJBOH. It IS 

said from its first heat to its first torch, because vital heat is love, 
and conjugial heat or love successively increases, and at length 
as it were into a flame or torch. We have said " to its first 
torch," because we mean the first state after the nuptials, when 
that love burns ; but what its quality becomes after this torch, 
in the marriage itself, has been described in the preceding chap- 
ters ; but in this part we are explaining its order from the be- 
ginning of its career to this its first goal. That all order proceeds 
from first principles to last, and that the last become the first of 
gome following order, also that all things of the middle order 
are the last of a prior and the first of a following order, and that 
thus ends proceed continually through causes into effects, mav be 
sufficiently confirmed and illustrated to the eye of reason Irom 
what is known and visible in the world ; but as at present we are 
treating only of the order in which love proceeds from its first 
starting-place to its goal, we shall pass by such confirmation and 

253 * 



311 313 OGNJFCHAL LOVE 

illustration, and only observe on this subject, that such as the 
order of this love is from its first heat to its first torch, such it 
is in general, and such is its influence in its progression after- 
wards ; for in this progression it unfolds itself, according to the 
quality of its first heat : if this heat was chaste, its chasteness 
is strengthened as it proceeds ; but if it was unchaste, its un- 
chasteness increases as it advances, until it is deprived of all 
that chasteness which, from the time of betrothing, belonged to it 
from without, but not from within. 

312. XVI. CONJU0IAL LOVE PEECIPITATED WITHOUT OBDER 
AND THE MODES THEREOF, BUBNS UP THE MAEBOWS AND IS CON- 
SUMED. So it is said by some in the heavens ; and by the 
marrows they mean the interiors of the mind and body. The 
reason why these are burnt up, that is, consumed, by precipitated 
conjugial love is, because that love in such case begins from a 
flame which eats up and corrupts those interiors, in which as in 
its principles conjugial love should reside, and from which it 
should commence. This comes to pass if the man and woman 
without regard to order precipitate marriage, and do not look to 
the Lord, and consult their reason, but reject betrothing and 
comply merely with the flesh : from the ardor of which, if that 
love commences, it becomes external and not internal, thus not 
conjugial ; and such love may be said to partake of the shell, not of 
the kernel ; or may be called fleshly, lean, and dry, because emptied 
of its genuine essence. See more on this subject above n 305. 

313. XVII. THE STATES OF THE MINDS OF EACH OF THK 
PASTIES PBOCEEDING IN SUCCESSIVE OBDEB, FLOW INTO THE 
STATE OF MABBIAGE; NEVEBTHELESS IN ONE MANNEB WITH THE 

SPIBITUAL AND IN ANOTHEB WITH THE NATUBAL. That the last 

state is such as that of the successive order from which it is 
formed and exists, is a rule, which from its truth must be 
acknowledged by the learned ; for thereby we discover what 
influx is, and what it effects. By influx we mean all that which 
precedes, and constitutes what follows, and by things fol- 
lowing in order constitutes what is last; as all that which 
precedes with a man, and constitutes his wisdom; or all that 
which precedes with a statesman, and constitutes his political 
skill ; or all that which precedes with a theologian, and consti- 
tutes his erudition ; in like manner all that which proceeds from 
infancy, and constitutes a man ; also what proceeds in order from 
a seed and a twig, and makes a tree, and afterwards what pro- 
ceeds from a blossom, and makes its fruit ; in like manner all 
that which precedes and proceeds with a bridegroom and bride, 
and constitutes their marriage: this is the meaning of influx. 
That all those things which precede in minds form series, which 
collect together, one next to another, and one after another, and 
that these together compose a last or ultimate, is as yet unknown 
in the world ; but as it is a truth from heaven, i<* is here adduced: 

254: 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 313, 814 

for it explains what influx effects, and what is the quality of the 
last or ultimate, in which the above-mentioned series successively 
formed co-exist. From these considerations it may be seen that 
the states of the minds of each of the parties proceeding in 
successive order flow into the state of marriage. But married 
partners after marriage are altogether ignorant of the successive 
things which are insinuated into, and exist in their minds (animis) 
from things antecedent ; nevertheless it is those things which 
give form to conjugial love, and constitute the state of their 
minds ; from which state they act the one with the other. The 
reason why one state is formed from one order with such as are 
spiritual, and from another with such as are natural, is, because 
the spiritual proceed in a just order, and the natural in an unjust 
order ; for the spiritual look to the Lord, and the Lord provides 
and leads the order ; whereas the natural look to themselves, 
and thence proceed in an inverted order ; wherefore with the 
latter the state of marriage is inwardly full of unchasteness ; and 
as that unchasteness abounds, so does cold ; and as cold abounds 
'go do the obstructions of the inmost life, whereby its vein is 
closed and its fountain dried. 

314, XVIII. THEEE ABB SUCCESSIVE AND SIMULTANEOUS 

ORDER, AND THE LATTER 18 FROM THE FORMER AND ACCORDING 

TO IT. This is adduced as a reason tending to confirm what 
goes before. It is well known that there exist what is succes- 
sive and what is simultaneous ; but it is unknown that simul- 
taneous order is grounded in successive, and is according to it ; 
yet how things successive enter into things simultaneous, and 
what order they form therein, it is very difficult to present to 
the perception, since the learned are not in possession of any 
ideas that can elucidate the subject ; and as the first idea respect- 
ing this arcanum cannot be suggested in few words, and to treat 
this subject at large would withdraw the mind from a more com- 
prehensive view of the subject of conjugial love, it may suffice 
for illustration to quote what we have adduced in a compendium 
respecting those two orders, the successive and the simultaneous, 
and respecting the influx of the former into the latter, in THK 
DOCTRINE OF THE I^Tsw JERUSALEM RESPECTING- THE SACRED 
SCRIPTURE, where are these words : " There are in heaven and 
in the world successive order and simultaneous order. In suc- 
cessive order one thing follows after another from the highest to 
the lowest; but in simultaneous order one thing is next to 
another from the inmost to the outermost. Successive order is 
like a column with steps from the highest to the lowest ; but 
simultaneous order is Iie a work cohering from the centre to the 
surface. Successive order becomes in the ultimate simultaneous 
in this manner ; the highest things of successive order become 
the in most ofcimultaneous, and the lowest things of successive 
order become the outermost of simultaneous ; comparatively as 

255 



314, 316 coNJuaiAL LOVE 

when a column of steps subsides, it becomes a body cohering m 
a plane. Thus what is simultaneous is formed from what is suc- 
cessive; and this in all things both of the spiritual and of the 
natural world." See n. 38, 65, of that work; and several further 
observations on this subject in the ANGELIC WISDOM RESPECTING 
THE DIVINE LOVE AND DIVINE WISDOM, n. 205 229. The case 
is similar with successive order leading to marriage, and with 
simultaneous order in marriage ; namely, that the latter is from 
the former, and according to it. He that is acquainted with the 
influx of successive order into simultaneous, may comprehend 
tho reason why the angels can see in a man's hand all the 
thoughts and intentions of his mind, and also why wives, from 
their husbands' hands on their bosoms, are made sensible of 
their affections ; which circumstance has been occasionally men- 
tioned in the MEMORABLE RELATIONS. The reason of this is, 
because the hands are the ultiinates of man, wherein the delibera- 
tions and conclusions of his mind terminate, and there consti- 
tute what is simultaneous: therefore also in the Word, mention 
is made of a thing's being inscribed on the hands. 

# * * * * * 

315. To the above I shall add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS. 
FIRST. On a certain time I saw not far from me a meteor a 
cloud divided into smaller clouds, some of which were of an 
azure color, gome opaque, and as it were in collision together. 
They were streaked with translucent irradiations of light, which 
atone time appeared sharp like the points of swords, at another, 
blunt like broken swords. The streaks sometimes darted out 
forwards, at others they drew themselves in again, exactly like 
combatants ; thus those different colored lesser clouds appeared to 
be at war together ; but it was only their manner of sporting 
with each other. And as this meteor appeared at no great dis- 
tance from me, I raised my eyes, and looking attentively, I saw 
boys, youths, and old men, entering a house which was built of 
marble, on a foundation of porphyry ; and it was over this houso 
that the phenomenon appeared. Then addressing myself to one 
that was entering, I asked, "What house is this ?'" He answered, 
" It is a gymnasium, where young persons are initiated into vari- 
ous things relating to wisdom." Oa hearing this, Lwent in with 
them, being then in the spirit, that is, in a similar state with 
men of the spiritual world, who are called spirits and angels ; and 
lol in the gymnasium there were in front a desk, in the middle, 
benches, at the sides round about, chairs, and over the entrance, 
an orchestra. The desk was for the young men that were to give 
answers to the problem at that time to be proposed, the benches 
were for the audience, the chairs at the sides were for those who 
on former occasions had given wise answers, and the orchestra 
was for the seniors, who were arbitrators and judges : in the 
middle of the orchestra was apulpit^ where there sat a wise inan s 



ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 315 

whom they called the head master, who proposed the problems 
to which the young men gave their answers from the desk. 
When all were assembled, this man arose from the pnlpit and 
said, " Give an answer now to this problem, and solve it if yon 

Can, ^ WHAT IS THE SOUL, AND WHAT IS ITS QUALITY?" On 

hearing this problem all were amazed, and made a muttering 
noise; and some of the company on the benches exclaimed, 
^ What mortal man, from the age of Saturn to the present time, 
has been^able by any rational thought to see and ascertain what 
the soul is, still less what is its quality? Is not this subject above 
the sphere of all human understanding?" But it was replied 
frorn^ the orchestra, "It is not above the understanding, but 
within it and in its view ; only let the problem be answered. 71 
Then the young men, who were chosen on that day to ascend the 
desk, and give an answer to the problem, arose. They were five 
in number, who had been examined by the seniors, and found to 
excel in sagacity, and were then sitting on couches at the sides 
of the desk. They afterwards ascended in the order in which they 
were seated; and every one, when he ascended, put on a silken 
tunic of an opaline color, and over it a robe of soft wool inter- 
woven with flowers, and on his head a cap, on the crown of 
which was a bunch of roses encircled with small sapphires. The 
first youth thus clad ascended the desk, and thus began : " What 
the soul is, and what is its quality, has never been revealed to 
any one since the day of creation, being an arcanum in the trea- 
suries of Grod alone ; but this has been discovered, that the soul 
resides in a man as a queen ; yet where her palace is, has been a 
matter of conjecture among the learned. Some have supposed it 
to be in a small tubercle between the cerebrum and the cere- 
bellum, which is called the pineal gland: in this they have fixed 
the soul's habitation, because the whole man is ruled from those 
two brains, and they are regulated by that tubercle ; therefore 
whatever regulates the brains, regulates also the whole man from 
the head to the heel." He also added, "Hence this conjecture 
appeared as true or probable to many in the world ; but in the 
succeeding age it was rejected as groundless." When he had 
thus spoken, he put off the robe, the tunic, and the cap, which 
the second of the selected speakers put on, and ascended the 
desk. His sentiments concerning the soul are as follows : " In 
the whole heaven and the whole world it is unknown what the 
soul is, and what is its quality ; it is however known that there is 
a soul, and that it is in man ; but in what part of him is a matter 
of conjecture. This is certain, that it is in the head, since the 
head is the seat where the understanding thinks, and the will 
intends ; and in front in the face of the head are man's five sen- 
Bories, receiving life from the soul alone which resides in the head ; 
but in what particular part of the head the soul has its more im- 
mediate residence, I dare not take upon me to say j yet I agree 

17 257 



CONJTOIAL LOVE 

with those who fix its abode in the three ventricles oi the 
brain, sometimes inclining to the opinion of those who fix it in 
the corpora striata therein, sometimes to theirs who fix it in the 
medullary substance of each brain, sometimes to theirs who fix 
it in the cortical substance, and sometimes to theirs who fix 
it in the dura mater ; for arguments, and those too of weight, 
have not been wanting in the support of each of these opinions. 
The arguments in favor of the three ventricles of the brain have 
been, that those ventricles are the recipients of the animal 
epirits and of all the lymphs of the brain : the arguments in 
favor of the corpora striata have been, that these bodies con- 
stitute the marrow, through which the nerves are emitted, and 
by which each brain is continued into the spine ; and from the 
spine and the marrow there is an emanation of fibres serving 
for the contexture of the whole body: the arguments in favor 
of the medullary substance of each brain have been, that this 
substance is a collection and congeries of all the fibres, which 
are the rudiments or beginnings of the whole man : the argu- 
ments in favor of the cortical substance have been, that in that 
substance are contained the prime and ultimate ends, and con* 
sequently the principles of all the fibres, and thereby of all the 
senses and motions : the arguments in favor of the dura mater 
have been, that it is the common covering of each brain, and 
hence by some kind of continuous principle extends itself over 
the heart and the viscera of the body. As to myseJf, I am 
undetermined which of these opinions is the most probable, 
and therefore I leave the matter to your determination and 
decision." Having thus concluded he descended from the desk, 
and delivered the tunic, the robe, and the cap, to the third, 
who ^ mounting into the desk began as follows: "How little 
qualified is a youth like myself for the investigation of so sub- 
lime a theorem 1 I appeal to the learned who are here seated at 
the sides of the gymnasium ; I appeal to you wise ones in the 
orchestra ; yea, I appeal to the angels of the highest heaven, 
whether any person, from his own rational light, is able to form 
any idea concerning the soul ; nevertheless I, like others, can 
guess about the place of its abode in man ; and my conjecture 
is, that it is in the heart and thence in the blood ; and I ground 
my conjecture on this circumstance, that the heart by its blood 
rules both the body and the head ; for it sends forth a large 
vessel called the aorta into the whole body, and vessels called th 
carotids into the whole head ; hence it is universally agreed, that 
the soul from the heart by means of the blood supports, nour* 
ishes, and vivifies the universal organical system both of tho 
body and the head. As a further proof of this position it may 
be urged, that in the Sacred Scripture frequent mention is made 
of the soul and the heart; as where it is said, Thou shalt love 
God from the whole soul and the whole heart; and that God 
253 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 314 

creates in man a new sonl and a new heart, Dent. vi. 5 ; chap. 
x. 12 ; chap. xi. 13 ; chap. xxvi. 16; Jerem. xxxii. 41 ; Matt 
xxii. 37 ; Mark xii. 30, 33 ; Luke x. 27 ; and in other places : 
it is also expressly said, that the blood is the sonl of the flesh. 
Levit. xvii. 11, 14" At these words, the cry of "Learned! 
learned!" was heard in the assembly, and was found to proceed 
from some of the canons. After this a fourth, clad in the gar 
raents of the former speaker, ascended the desk, and thus began: 
" I also am inclined to suspect that not a single person can be 
found of so subtle and refined a genius as to be able to discover 
what the soul is, and what is its quality ; therefore I am of 
opinion, that in attempting to make the discovery, subtlety will 
be sj)ent in fruitless labor ; nevertheless from my childhood I have 
continued firm in the opinion of the ancients, that the soul of 
man is in the whole of him, and in every part of the whole, and 
thus that it is in the head and in all its parts, as well as in the 
body and in all its parts ; and that it is an idle conceit of the 
moderns to fix its habitation in any particular part, and not in 
the body throughout ; besides, the soul is a spiritual substance, 
of which there cannot be predicated either extension or place, 
but habitation and impletion ; moreover, when mention is made 
of the soul, who does not conceive life to be meant? and is not 
life in the whole and in every part ?" These sentiments were 
favorably received by a great part of the audience. After him the 
fifth rose, and, being adorned with the same insignia, thus deli- 
vered himself from the desk : " I will not waste your time and 
my own in determining the place of the soul's residence, whether 
it be in some particular part of the body, or in the whole ; but 
from my mind's storehouse I will communicate to you my senti- 
ments on the subject, What is the soul, and what is its quality? 
No one conceives of the soul but as of a pure somewhat, which 
may be likened to ether, or air, or wind, containing a vital prin- 
ciple, from the rationality which man enjoys above the beasts. 
This opinion I conceive 'to be founded on the circumstance, that 
when a man expires, he is said to breathe forth, or emit his soul 
or spirit ; hence also the soul which lives after death is believed 
to be such a breath or vapor animated by some principle of 
thinking life, which is called the soul ; and what else can the 
soul be T But as I heard it declared from the orchestra, that 
this problem concerning the soul, its nature and quality, is not 
above the understanding, but is within it and in its view, I 
intreat and beseech you, who have made this declaration, to 
unfold this eternal arcanum yourselves." Then the elders im 
the orchestra turned their eyes towards the head master, who 
had proposed the problem, and who understood by their signs 
that they wished him to descend and teach the audience : so he 
instantly quitted the pulpit, passed through the auditory, and 
entered the desk, and there, stretching out his hand, he thus 

259 



316 CON.TTOIAL LOVK 

began : " Let me bespeak your attention : who does not believe 
the soul to be the inmost and most subtle essence of man ? and 
what is an essence without a form, but an imaginary ^entity ? 
wherefore the soul is a form, and a form whose qualities and 
properties I will now describe. It is a form of all things relat- 
ing to love, and of all things relating to wisdom. All things 
relating to love are called affections, and those relating to wisdom 
are called perceptions. The latter derived from the former and 
thereby united with them constitute one form, in which are con- 
tained innumerable things in such an order, series, and coherence, 
that they may be called a one ; and they may be called a one 
also for this reason, because nothing can be taken away from it, 
or added to it, but the quality of the form is changed. "What is 
the human soul but such a form ? are not all things relating to 
love and all things relating to wisdom essentials of that form ? 
and are not these things appertaining to a man in his soul, and 
by derivation from the soul in his head and body ? Ton are 
called spirits and angels ; and in the world you believed that 
spirits and angels are like mere wind or ether, and thus mere 
mind and animation ; and now you see clearly that you are truly, 
really, and actually men, who, during your abode in the world, 
lived and thought in a material body, and knew that a material 
body does not live and think, but a spiritual substance in that 
body ; and this substance you called the soul, whose form you 
then were 'qjnorant of, but now have seen and continue to see. 
You all aiv ,ouls 3 of whose immortality you have heard, thought, 
said, and written so much ; and because you are forms of love 
and wisdom from God, you can never die. The soul therefore is 
a human form, from which the smallest thing cannot be taken 
away, and to which the smallest thing cannot be added ; and it 
is the inmost of all the forms of the whole body : and since the 
forms which are without receive from the inmost both essence 
and form, therefore you are souls, as you appear to yourselves 
and to us : in a word, the soul is the very man himself, because 
it is the inmost man ; therefore its form is fully and perfectly the 
buman form : nevertheless it is not life, but the proximate re- 
ceptacle of life from God, and thereby the habitation of God." 
W hen he had thus spoken, many expressed their approbation ; 
but some said, " We will weigh the matter." I immediately 
went home, and lo 1 over the gymnasium, instead of the fore- 
going meteor, there appeared a bright cloud, without streaks or 
rays that seemed to combat with each other, and which, pene- 
trating through the roof, entered, and illuminated the walls ; 
%nd I was informed, that they saw some pieces of writing, and 
among others this, "Jehovah God breathed into the man?* 
nostrtls the SOUL OF LIVES, and the man became a LIVING SOUL,*' 
Gen. ii. 7. 

316. THE SECOND MEMORABIE RELATION/ Some time ago, 
260 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 316 

as I was walking with my mind (animus) at rest, and in a state 
of delightful mental peace, I saw at a distance a grove, in the 
midst of which was an avenue leading to a small palace, into 
which maidens and youths, husbands and wives were entering. 
I also went thither in spirit, and asked the keeper who was 
landing at the entrance, whether I also might enter? lie 
Booked at ine ; upon which I said, " "Why do you look at me I" 
lie replied, " I look at you that I may see whether the delight 
of peace, which appears in your face, partakes at all of the 
delight of conjugial love. Beyond this avenue there is a little 
garden, and in the midst of it a house, where there are two 
novitiate conjugial partners, who to-day are visited by their 
friends of both sexes, coining to pay their congratulations. I do 
not know those whom I admit; but I was told that I should 
know them by their faces : those in whom I saw the delights of 
conjugial love, I was to admit, and none else?" All the angels 
can see from the faces of others the delights of their hearts ; and 
he saw the delight of that love in my face, because I was then 
meditating on conjugial love. This meditation beamed forth 
from my eyes, and thence entered into the interiors of my face; 
he therefore told me that I might enter. The avenue through 
which ^1 entered was formed of fruit trees connected together 
by their branches, which made on each side a continued espalier. 
Through the avenue I entered the little garden, which breathed 
a pleasant fragrance from its shrubs and flowers. The shrubs 
and flowers were in pairs ; and I was informed that such little 
gardens appear about the houses where there are and have been 
nuptials, and hence they are dialled nuptial gardens. I after- 
wards entered 'the house, where I saw the two conjugial partners 
holding each other by the hands, and conversing together from 
love truly conjumal ; and as I looked, it was given me to see 
from their faces tlie image of conjugial love, and from their 
conversation the vital principle thereof. After I, with the rest 
of the company, had paid them my respects, and wished them all 
happiness, I went into the nuptial garden, and saw on the right 
side of it a company of youths, to whom all who came out of 
the house resorted. The reason of their resorting to them was, 
because they were conversing respecting conjugial love, and con- 
versation on this subject attracts to it the minds (animos) of all 
by a certain occult power. I then listened to a wise one who 
was speaking on the sutyect ; and the sum of what I heard is as 
follows : That the divine providence of the Lord is most par- 
ticular and thence most universal in respect to marriages in the 
heavens : because all the felicities of heaven issue from the 
delights of conjugial love, like sweet waters from the sweet source 
of a fountain ; and that on this account it is provided by the 
Lord that coujugial pairs be born, and that these pairs be con- 
tinually educated for marriage, neither the maiden nor the youth 

261 



CONJUGIAL LOVE 

knowing anything of the matter; and after a stated time, when 
they both become marriageable, they meet as by chance, and see 
each otLer ; and that in this case they instantly know, as by a 
kind of instinct, that they are pairs, and by a kind of inward 
dictate think within themselves, the youth, that she is mine, and 
the maiden, that he is mine ; and when this thought has existed 
for some time in the mind of each, they deliberately accost each 
other, and betroth themselves. It is said, " as by chance," and 
" as by instinct/' and the meaning is, "by the divine providence; 
since, while the divine providence is unknown, it has such an 
appearance. That conjugial pairs are born and educated to 
marriage, while each party is ignorant of it, he proved by the 
conjugial likeness visible in the faces of each; also by the inti- 
mate and eternal union of miads (animorwri) and minds (menti- 
um\ which could not possibly exist, as it does in heaven, without 
being foreseen and provided by the Lord. When the wise one 
had proceeded thus far with his discourse, and had received the 
applauses of the company, he further added, that in the minutest 
things with man, both male and female, there is a conjugial 
principle; but still the conjugial principle with the male is dif- 
ferent from what it is with the female ; also that in the male 
conjugial principle there is what is conjunctive with the female 
conjugial principle, and viee versa, even in the minutest things. 
This he confirmed by the marriage of the will and the under- 
standing in every individual, which two principles act together 
upon the minutest things of the mind and of the body; from 
wiich considerations it may be seen, that in every substance, 
even the smallest, there is a conjugial principle ; and that this ia 
evident from the compound substances whicli are made up of 
simple substances ; as that there are two eyes, two ears, two 
nostrils, two cheeks, two lips, two arms with hands, two loins, 
two feet, and within in man two hemispheres of the brain, two 
ventricles of the heart, two lobes of the lungs, two kidneys, two 
testicles ; and where there are not two, still they are divided into 
* two. The reason why there are two is, because the one is of the 
will and the other of the understanding, which act wonderfully 
ia each other to present a one ; wherefore the two eyes make one 
sight, the two ears one hearing, the two nostrils one smell, the 
two lips one speech, the two hands one labor, the two feet one 
pace, the two hemispheres of the brain one habitation of the 
mind, the two chambers of the heart one life of the body by the 
blood, the two lobes of the lungs one respiration, and so forth ; 
but the male andfemale principles, united by love truly coujugial, 
constitute one life fully human. While he was saying these 
things, there appeared red lightning on the right, and white 
lightning on the left ; each was mild, and they entered through 
the eves mto the mind, and also enlightened it. After the 
lightning it also thundered ; which was a gentle murmur frc m 
262 



AND TO CEASTE DELIGHTS. 316, 317 

the angelic heaven flowing down and increasing. On hearing 
and seeing these things, the wise one said, " These are to remind 
me to add the following observations : that of the above pairs, 
the right one signifies their good, and the left their truth ; and 
that this is from the marriage of good and truth, which is in- 
scribed on man in general and in every one of his principles ; 
and good has reference to the will, and truth to the understand- 
ing, and both together to a one. Hence, in heaven the right 
eye is the good of vision, and the left the "truth thereof; also the 
right ^ear is the good of hearing, and the left the truth thereof; 
and likewise the right hand is the good of a man's ability, and 
the left the truth thereof; and in like manner in the rest of the 
above pairs ; and since the right and left have such significations, 
therefore the Lord said, fi If thy right eye scandalize thee, pluck 
it out ; and if thy right hand scandalize thee, cut it off ; whereby 
he meant, if good becomes evil, the evil must be cast out. This 
is the reason also why he said to his disciples that they should 
cast the net on the right side of the ship ; and that when they 
did so, they took a great multitude of fishes ; whereby he meant 
that they should teach the good of charity, and that thus they 
would collect men." When he had said these things, the two 
lightnings again appeared, but milder than before ; and then it 
was seen, that the lightning on the left derived its whiteness from 
the red-shining fire of the lightning on the right; on seeing 
which he said, " This is a sign from heaven tending to confirm 
what I have said ; because what is firy in heaven is good, and 
what is white in heaven is truth ; and its being seen that the 
lightning on the left derived its whiteness from the red-shining 
fire of the lightning on the right, is a demonstrative sign that 
the whiteness of light, or light, is merely the splendor of fire." 
On hearing this all went home, inflamed with the good and truth 
of gladness, in consequence of the above lightnings, and of the 
conversation respecting them. 



ON REPEATED MARRIAGES. 

317, IT may come to be a matter of question, whether 
conjugial love, which is that of one man with one wife, after the 
death of one of the parties, can be separated, or transferred, or 
superinduced ; also whether repeated marriages have any thing 
in common with polygamy, and thereby whether they may be 
called successive polygamies ; with several other inquiries which 
often add scruples to scruples with men of a reasoning spirit. 
In order therefore that those who are curious in such researches, 
and who only grope in the shade respecting these marriages, 

263 



317, 818 CONJIJGIAL LOTE 

may see some light, I have conceived it would be worth while to 
present for their consideration the following articles on the 
subject : I. After the death of a married partner, again to con" 
tract wedlock, depends on the preceding conjugial love. IL It 
depends also on the state of marriage, in which the parties had 
lived. III. With those who have not been in love truly conjugial 
there is no obstacle or hindrance to their again contracting wed- 
lock. IV. Those who had lived together in love truly conjugial 
are unwilling to marry again, except for reasons separate from 
Gonjugial love. V. The state of the marriage of a youth with a 
maiden differs from that of a youth with a widow. VI. The state 
of the marriage of a widower with a maiden differs also from that 
of a widower with a widow. VII. The varieties and diversities of 
these marriages as to love and its attributes are innumerable. 
VIII. The state of a widow is more grievous than that of a 
widower. "We proceed to the explanation of each article. 

318. I. AFTER THE DEATH OF A MARRIED PARTIES, AGAIN 

TO CONTRACT WEDLOCK, DEPENDS ON THE PRECEDING- CONJUGIAL 

LOVE. Love truly conjugial is like a balance, in which the in- 
clinations for repeated marriages are weighed : so far as the pre- 
ceding conjugial love had been genuine, so far the inclination for 
another marriage is weak ; but so far as the preceding love had 
not been genuine, so far the inclination to another marriage is 
usually strong. The reason of this is obvious ; because conjugial 
love is in a similar degree a conjunction of minds, which remains 
in the life of the body of the one party after the decease of the 
other ; and this holds the inclination as a scale in a balance, and 
causes a preponderance according to the appropriation of 'true 
love. But since the approach to this love is seldom made at this 
day except for a few paces, therefore the scale of the preponder- 
ance of the inclination generally rises to a state of equilibrium, 
and from thence inclines and tends to the other side, that is, to 
marriage. The contrary is the case with those, whose preceding 
love in the former marriage has not been truly conjugial, because 
in proportion as that love is not genuine, there is in a like degree 
a disjunction of minds, which also remains in the life of the 
body of the one party after the decease of the other ; and this 
enters the will disjoined from that of the other, and causes an 
inclination for a new connection ; in favor of which the thought 
arising from the inclination of the will induces the hope of a 
more united, and thereby a more delightful connection. That 
inclinations to repeated marriages arise from the state of the 
preceding love, is well known, and is also obvious to reason : 
for love truly conjugial is influenced by a fear of loss, and loss ia 
followed by grief; and this grief and fear reside in the very in- 
most principles of the mind. Hence, so far as that love prevails, 
BO far the soul inclines both in will and in thought, that is, in 
intention, to be in the subject with and in which it was ; from 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 318 320 

these considerations it follows, that the mind is kept balancing 
towards another marriage according to the degree of love in 
which it was in the former marriage. Hence it is that after 
death the same parties are re-united, and mutually love each 
other as they did in the world : but as we said above, such love 
at this day is rare, and there are few who make the slightest 
approach to it ; and those who do not approach it, and still more 
those who keep at a distance from it, as they were desirous of 
separation in the matrimonial life heretofore passed, so after 
death they are desirous of being united to another. But respect- 
ing both these sorts of persons more will be said in what follows. 

319. II. AFTER THE DEATH OF A MARRIED PARTNER, AGAIN 

TO CONTRACT WEDLOOK, DEPENDS ALSO ON THE STATE OF MAR- 
RIAGE IN WHICH THE PARTIES HAD LIVED. By the State of 

marriage here we do not mean the state .of love treated of in the 
foregoing article, because the latter causes an internal inclina- 
tion to marriage or from it ; but we mean the state of marriage 
which causes an external inclination to it or from it ; and this 
state with its inclinations is manifold : as, 1. If there are children 
in the house, and a new mother is to be provided for them. 2. 
If there is a wish for a further increase of children. 3. If the 
house is large and full of servants of both sexes. 4* If the 
calls of business abroad divert the mind from domestic concerns, 
and ^ without a new mistress there is reason to fear misery and 
misfortune. 5. If mutual aids and offices require that married 
partners be engaged in various occupations and employments. 6. 
Moreover it depends on the temper and disposition of the sepa- 
rated partner, whether after the first marriage the other partner 
can or cannot live alone, or without a consort. 7. The preced- 
ing marriage also disposes the mind either to be afraid of mar- 
ried life, or in favor of it. 8. I have been informed that poly- 
gamical love and the love of the sex, also the lust of deflower- 
ing and the lust of variety, have induced the minds (animos) ol 
some to desire repeated marriages; and that the minds of some 
have also been induced thereto by a fear of the law and of the 
loss of reputation, in case they commit whoredom: besides 
several other circumstances which promote external inclinations 
to matrimony. 

320. III. WITH THOSE WHO HAVE NOT BEEN IN LOVE TRULY 

CONJUGIAL, THERE IS NO OBSTACLE OR HINDRANCE TO THEIK 

AGAIN CONTRACTING WEDLOOK. With those who have not been 
principled in conjugial love, there is no spiritual or internal, but 
only a natural or external bond ; and if an internal bond does 
not keep the external in its order and tenor, the latter is but like 
a bundle when the bandage is removed, which flows every way 
according as it is tossed or driven by the wind. The reason 
of this is, because what is natural derives its origin from what ia 
spiritual, and in its existence is merelv a mass collected from 

265 



320, 321 CONJTOIAL LOVE. 

spiritual principles; wherefore if the natural be separated fiom 
the spiritual, which produced and as it were begot it, it is no 
longer kept together interiorly, but only exteriorly by the spi- 
ritual, which encompasses and binds it in general, and does not 
tie it and keep it tied together in particular. Hence it is, that 
the natural principle separated from the spiritual, in the case of 
two married partners, does not cause any conjunction of minds, 
and consequently of wills, but only a conjunction of some ex- 
ternal affections, which are connected with the bodily senses. 
The reason why nothing opposes and hinders such persons from 
again contracting wedlock, is, because they have not been the 
essentials of marriage ; and hence those essentials do not at all 
influence them after separation by death : therefore they are 
then absolutely at their own disposal, whether they be widowers 
or widows, to bind their sensual affections with whomsoever they 
please, provided there be no legal impediment. Neither do they 
themselves think of marriages in any other than a natural view, 
and from a regard to convenience in supplying various necessi- 
ties and external advantages, which after the death of one of the 
parties may again be supplied by another ; and possibly, if their 
interior thoughts were viewed, as in the spiritual world, there 
would not be found in them any distinction between conjugial 
unions and extra-conjugial connections. The reason why it is 
allowable for these to contract repeated marriages, is, as above- 
mentioned, because merely natural connections are after death of 
themselves dissolved and fall asunder ; for by death the external 
affections follow the body, and are entombed with it ; those only 
remaining which are connected with internal principles. But it 
is to be observed, that marriages interiorly conjunctive can 
scarcely be entered into in the world, because elections of in- 
ternal likenesses cannot there be provided by the Lord as in the 
heavens ; for they are limited in many ways, as to equals in rank 
and condition, within the country, city, and village where they 
live; and in the world for the most part married partners are 
held together merely by externals, and thus not by internals , 
which internals do not shew themselves till some time after mar- 
riage, and are only known when they influence the externals. 
321. IV. THOSE WHO HAD LIVED TOGETHER IK LOVE TRULY 

CONJUGIAL ATMS UKWILLIHG TO MARRY AGAIN, JEXOEFT FOR REA- 
SONS SEPARATE FROM coOTUGiAL LOVE. The reasons why those 
who had lived in love truly conjugial, after the death of their 
married partners are unwilling to marry again, are as follow, 1. 
Because they were united as to their souls, and thence as to 
their minds; and this union, being spiritual, is an actual jun<> 
tion of the soul and mind of one of the parties to those of tho 
other, which cannot possibly be dissolved; that such is the 
nature of spiritual conjunction, has been constantly shewn 
above. 2. Because they were also united as to tiie^r bodies by 
266 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 321, 322 

the receptions of the propagation jf the soul of the husband by 
the wife, and thus by the insertion of his life into hers, whereby 
a maiden becomes a wife ; and on the other hand by the reception 
of the conjugial love of the wife by the husband, which disposes 
the interiors of his mind, and at the same time the interiors and 
exteriors of his body, into a state receptible of love and percep- 
tible of wisdom, which makes him from a youth become a hus- 
band ; see above, n.,198. 3. Because a sphere of love from the 
wife, and a sphere of understanding from the man, is continually 
flowing forth, and because it perfects conjunctions, and encom- 
passes them with its pleasant influence, and unites them ; see 
also above, n. 223. 4. Because married partners thus united 
think of, and desire what is eternal, and because on this idea 
their eternal happiness is founded ; see n. 216. 5. From these 
several considerations it is, that they are no longer two, but one 
man, that is, one flesh. 6. That such a union cannot be de- 
stroyed by the death of one of the parties, is manifest to the sight 
of a spirit. Y. To the above considerations shall be added this 
new information, that two such conjugial partners, after the 
death of one, are still not separated ; since the spirit of the 
deceased dwells continually with that of the survivor, and this 
even to the death of the latter, when they again meet and are 
reunited, and love each'other more tenderly than before, because 
they are then in the spiritual world. Hence flows this unde* 
niable consequence, that those who had lived in love truly con- 
jugial, are unwilling to marry again. But if they afterwards 
contract something like marriage, it is for reasons separate from 
conjugial love, which are all external ; as in case there are young 
children in the house, and the care of them requires attention ; 
if the house is large and full of servants of both sexes ; if the 
calls of business abroad divert the mind from domestic concerns ; 
if mutual aids and offices are necessary ; with other cases of a 
like nature. 

322. V. THE STATE OF THE MARRIAGE OF A YOUTH WITH 

A MAIDEN DIFFERS FROM THAT OF A YOUTH WITH A WIDOW. By 

states of marriage we mean the states of the life of each party 
the husband and the wife, after the nuptials, thus in the mar 
riage, as to the quality of the intercourse at that time, whether 
it be internal, that is of souls and minds, which is intercourse in 
the principle idea, or whether it be only external, that is of 
minds (animorum\ of the senses, and of the body. The state of 
marriage of a y outii with a maiden is essentially itself initiatory to 
genuine marriage ; for between these conjugial love can proceed 
iu its just order, which is from its first heat to its first torch, 
and afterwards from its first seed with the youth-husband, and 
from its first flower with the maiden-wife, and thus generate, 
grow, and fructify, and introduce itself into those successive 
states with both parties mutually ; but if otherwise, the youth 01 



322 324 CONJUGIAL LOVJL 

the maiden was not really such, but only in external form. Bu 4 
between a youth and a widow there is not such an initiation to 
marriage from first principles, nor a like progression in marriage, 
sirce a widow is more at her own disposal, and under her own 
jurisdiction, than a maiden; wherefores youth addresses himself 
differently to his wife if she were a widow, from what he does if 
she were a maiden. But herein there -is much variety and diver- 
sity ; therefore the subject is here mentioned only in a general 
way. 

323. YI. THE STATE OF THE MARRIAGE OF A WIDOWER WITH 

A 'MAIDEN DIFFERS ALSO FROM THAT OF A WIDOWER WITH A 

WIDOW. For a widower has already been initiated into married 
life which a maiden has to be ; and yet conjugial love perceives 
and is sensible of its pleasantness and delight in mutual initia- 
tion ; a youth-husband and a maiden-wife perceive and are sen- 
sible of things ever new in whatever occurs, whereby they are in 
a kind of continual initiation and consequent amiable progression. 
The case is otherwise in the state of the marriage of a widower 
with a maiden : the maiden-wife has an internal inclination, where- 
as with the man that inclination has passed away ; but herein there 
is much variety and diversity : the case is similar in a marriage 
between a widower and a widow ; however, except this general 
notion, it is not allowable to add anything specifically. 

32i. YIL THE VARIETIES AND DIVERSITIES OF THESE MAR- 
RIAGES AS TO LOVE AND ITS ATTRIBUTES ARE INNUMERABLE. 

There is an infinite variety of all things, and also an infinite 
diversity. By varieties we here mean the varieties between those 
things which are of one genus or species, also between the genera 
and species ; but by diversities we here mean the diversities be- 
tween those things which are opposite. Our idea of the dis- 
tinction of varieties and diversities may be illustrated as follows; 
The angelic heaven, which is connected as a one, in an infinite 
variety, no one there being absolutely like another, either as to 
souls and minds, or as to affections, perceptions, and consequent 
thoughts, or as to inclinations and consequent intentions, or as 
to tone of voice, face, body, gesture, and gait, and several other 
particulars } and yet, notwithstanding there are myriads of my- 
riads, they have been and are arranged by the Lord into one 
form, in which there is full unanimity and concord ; and this 
could not possibly be, unless they were all, with their innu- 
merable varieties, universallyand inoi vidually under the guidance 
of one; these are what we here mean by varieties. But by 
diversities we mean the opposites of those varieties, which exist 
in hell ; for the inhabitants there are diametri {ally opposite 
to those in heaven ; and hell, which consists of such, is kept 
together as a one by varieties in themselves altogether contrary 
to the varieties in heaven, thus by perpetual diversities. From 
these considerations it is evident what is perceived by infinite 
268 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 324 326 

variety and infinite diversity. The case is the same in marriages, 
namely, that there are infinite varieties with those who are in 
conjugial love, and infinite varieties with those who are in adul- 
terous love ; and hence, that there are infinite diversities between 
the latter and the former. From these premises it follows, that 
the varieties and diversities in marriages of every genus and 
species, whether of a youth with a maiden, or of a youth with a 
widow, or of a widower with a maiden, or of a widower with a 
widow exceed all number: who can divide infinity into numbers! 

325. YIIL THE STATE OF A WIDOW is MORE GRIEVOUS THAN 
THAT OF A WIDOWEB. The reasons for this are both external 
and internal; the external are such as all can comprehend; as, 
1. That a widow cannot provide for herself and her family the 
necessaries of life, nor dispose of them when acquired, as a man 
can. and as she previously did by and with her husband. 2. 
That neither can she defend herself and her family as is expe- 
dient; for, while she was a wife, her husband was her defence, 
and as it were her arm ; and while she herself was her owi 
[defence and arm], she still trusted to her husband. 3. That of 
herself she is deficient of counsel in such things as relate to 
interior wisdom and the prudence thence derived. 4. That a 
widow is without the reception of love, in which as a woman she 
is principled; thus she is in a state contrary to that which was 
innate and induced by marriage. These external reasons, which 
are natural, have their origin from internal reasons also, which 
are spiritual, like all other things in the world and in the body ; 
respecting which see above, n. 220. Those external natural rea- 
sons are perceived from the internal spiritual reasons which pro- 
ceed from the marriage of good and truth, and principally from 
the following: that good cannot provide or arrange anything but 
by truth; that neither can good defend itself but by truth; con- 
sequently that truth is the defence and as it were the arm of 
good ; that good without truth is deficient of counsel, because 
it has counsel, wisdom, and prudence by means of truth. Now 
since, by creation the husband is truth, and the wife the good 
thereof; or, what is the same thing, since by creation the hus- 
band is understanding, and the wife the love thereof, it is evi- 
dent that the external or natural reasons, which aggravate the 
widowhood of a woman, have their origin from internal or spiri- 
tual reasons. These spiritual reasons, together with natural, are 
meant by what is said of widows in several passages in the Word ; 

as may be seen in the APOCALYPSE BEVEALED, n. 764 
*###*#& 

326. To the above I shall add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS. 
FIRST. After the problem concerning the soul had been discussed 
and solved ia the gymnasium, I saw them coming out in order : 
first came the chief teacher, then the elders, in the midst ol 
whom were the five youths who had given the answers, and aftei 

269 



826 CONJTOIAL LOVK 

these the rest. "When they were come out they went apart tc 
the er virons of the house, where there were piazzas surrounded 
by shrubs ; and being assembled, they divided themselves intc 
small companies, which were so many groups of youths conver- 
ing together on subjects of wisdom, in each of which was one of 
the wise persons from the orchestra. As I saw these from 
my apartment, I became in the spirit, and in that state I went 
out to them, and approached the chief teacher, who had lately 
proposed the problem concerning the soul. On seeing me, he 
said. " Who are you ? I was surprised as I saw you approaching 
in the way, that at one instant you came into my sight, and the 
next instant went out of it ; or that at one time I saw you, and 
suddenly I did not see you : assuredly you are not in the same 
state of life that we are, 55 To this 1 replied, smiling, " I am 
neither a player nor a vertumnus / but I am alternate, at one 
time in your light, and at another in your shade ; thus both a 
foreigner and a native." Hereupon the chief teacher looked at 
me, and said, " You speak things strange and wonderful : tell 
me who you are." I said, " I am in the world in which you 
have been, and from which you have departed, and which is 
called the natural world ; and I am also in the world into which 
you have come, and in which you are, which is called the 
spiritual world. Hence I am in a natural state, and at the same 
time in a spiritual state ; in a natural state with men of the earth 
and in a spiritual state with you ; and when I am in the natural 
state, you do not see me, but when I am in the spiritual state, 
you do ; that such should be my condition, has been granted me 
by the Lord. It is known to you, illustrious sir, that a man 
of the natural world does not see a man of the spiritual world, 
nor vice versa/ therefore when I let my spirit into the body, you 
did not see me ; but when I let it out of the body, you did see 
me. You have been teaching in the gymnasium, that you are 
souls, and that souls see souls, because they are human forms ; 
and you know, that when you were in the natural world, you did 
not see yourself or your souls in your bodies ; and this is a 
consequence of the difference between what is spiritual and what 
is natural." When he heard of the difference between what is 
spiritual and what is natural, he said, " What do you mean by that 
difference ? is it not like the difference between what is moreoi 
less pure ? for what is spiritual but that which is natural in a 
higher^ state ^ of purity F I replied, " The difference is of anothei 
kind ; it is like that between prior and posterior, which bear no 
determinate proportion to each other : for the prior is in the 
posterior as the cause is in the effect ; and the posterior is derived 
trom the prior as the effect from its cause: hence, the one does 
not appear to the other." To this the chief teacher replied, " I 
have meditated and ruminated upon this difference, but heretofore 
in vain ; I wish I could perceive it." I said, ( Tot* *iutU not 
270 



AND ITS CHASTE DJELIG-HT8. 326 

only perceive the difference between what is spiritual and what is 
natural, but shall also see it." I then proceeded as follows : u You 
yourself are in a spiritual state with your associate spirits, but in 
a natural state with me ; for you converse with your associates 
in the spiritual language, which is common to every spirit 
and angel, but with me in my mother- tongue ; for every 
spirit and angel, when conversing with a man, speaks hia 
peculiar language: thus French with a Frenchman, English 
with an Englishman, Greek with a Greek, Arabic with an 
Arabian, and so forth. That you may know therefore the differ- 
ence between what is spiritual and what is natural in respect to 
languages, mako this experiment ; withdraw to your associates, 
and say something there: then retain the expressions, and return 
with them in your memory, and utter them before me." He 
did so, and returned to me with those expressions in his mouth, 
and uttered them ; and they were altogether strange and foreign, 
such as do not occur in any language of the natural world. By 
this experiment several times repeated, it was made very evident 
that all the spiritual world have the spiritual language, which 
has in it nothing that is common to any natural language, and 
that every man comes of himself into tne use of that language 
after his decease. At the same time also he experienced, that 
the sound of the spiritual language differs so far from the sound 
of natural language, that a spiritual sound, though loud, could 
not at all be heard by a natural man, nor a natural sound by a 
spirit. Afterwards I requested the chief teacher and the by- 
standers to withdraw to their associates, and write some sentence 
or other on a piece of paper, and then return with it to me, and 
read it. They did so, and returned with the paper in their hand ; 
but when they read it, they could not understand any part of it, 
as the writing consisted only of some lettters of the alphabet, 
with turns over them, each of which was significative of some 
particular sense and meaning : because each letter of the alphabet 
is thus significative, it is evident why the Lord is called Alpha 
and Omega. On their repeatedly withdrawing, and writing in 
the same manner, and returning to me, they found that their 
writing involved and comprehended innumerable things which no 
natural writing could possibly express ; and they were given to 
understand, that this was in consequence of the spiritual man's 
thoughts being in comprehensible and ineffable to the natural man, 
and such as cannot flow and be brought into any other writing or 
language. Then as some present were unwilling to comprehend 
that spiritual thought so far exceeds natural thought, as to be 
respectively ineffable, I said to them, " Make the experiment ; 
withdraw into your spiritual society, and think on some subject, 
and retain your thoughts, and return, and express them before 
me." They did so; but when they wanted to express the 
subject thought of, they were unable ; for they did not find 

271 



326 328 CONJTTGIAL LOVE 

any idea of natural thought adequate to any idea of spiritual 
thought, consequently no words expressive of it ; for jdeas of 
thought are constituent of the words of language. This experi- 
ment they repeated again and again ; whereby thej; were con- 
vinced that spiritual ideas are supernatural, inexpressible, ineffa- 
ble, and incomprehensible to the natural man ; and on account 
of this their super-eminence, they said, that spiritual ideas, or 
thoughts, as compared with natural, were ideas of ideas, and 
thoughts of thoughts ; and that therefore they were expressive 
of qualities of qualities, and affections of affections ; consequently 
that spiritual thoughts were the beginnings and origins of natural 
thoughts : hence also it was made evident that spiritual wisdom 
was the wisdom of wisdom, consequently that it was impercep- 
tible to any wise man in the natural world. It was then told 
them from the third heaven, that there is a wisdom still interior 
and superior, which is called celestial, bearing a proportion to 
spiritual wisdom like that which spiritual wisdom bears to natural, 
and that these descend by^ an orderly influx according to the 
heavens from the divine wisdom of the Lord, which is infinite. 

327. After this I said to the by-standers, " You have seen 
from these three experimental proofs what is the difference be- 
tween spiritual and natural, and also the reason why the natural 
man does not appear to the spiritual, nor the spiritual to the 
natural, although they are consociated as to affections and 
thoughts, and thence as to presence. Hence it is that, as I 
approached, at one time you, Sir, (addressing the chief teacher), 
saw me, and at another you did not." After this, a voice was 
heard from the superior heaven to the chief teacher, saying, 
" Come up hither ;" and he went up ; and on his return, he said, 
that the angels, as well as himself, did not before know the 
differences between spiritual and natural, because there had 
never before been an opportunity of comparing them together, 
by any person's existing at the same time in both worlds ; and 
without such comparison and reference those differences were 
not as certain able. 

328. After this we retired, and conversing again on this sub- 
ject, I saidj "Those differences originate solely in this circum- 
stance of your existence in the spiritual world, that you are in 
substantiate and not in materials : and substantiate are the begin- 
ning of materials. You are in principles and thereby in sin^ 
gulars ; but we are in principiates and composites ; you are in 
particulars, but we are in generals ; and as generals cannot enter 
into particulars, so neither can natural things, which are material, 
enter into spiritual things which are substantial, any more than 
a ship's cable can enter into, or be drawn though, the eye of a 
fine needle ; or than a nerve can enter or be let into one of the 
fibres of which it is composed, or a fibre into one of the fibrils 
of which it is composed : this also is known in the world : there- 

272 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 328, 329 

fore herein the learned are agreed, that there is no such thing as 
an influx of what is natural into what is spiritual, but of what is 
spiritual into what is natural. This now is the reason why the 
natural man cannot conceive that which the spiritual man con- 
ceives, nor consequently express such conceptions; wherefore 
Paul calls what he heard from the third heaven ineffable. More- 
over, to think spiritually is to think abstractedly from space and 
tima, and to think naturally is to think in conjunction with space 
and time ; for in every idea of natural thought there is some- 
thing derived from space and time, which is not the case with 
any spiritual idea ; because the spiritual world is not in space 
and time, like the natural world, but in the appearances of space 
and time. In this respect also spiritual thoughts and perceptions 
differ from natural ; therefore you can think of the essence and 
omnipresence of God from eternity, that is, of God before the 
creation of the world, since you think of the essence of God 
from eternity abstracted from time, and of his omnipresence 
abstracted from space, and thus comprehend such things as 
transcend the ideas of the natural man." I then related to 
them, how I once thought of the essence and omnipresence of 
God from eternity, that is of God before the creation of the 
world ; and that because I could not yet remove spaces and 
times from the ideas of my thought, I was brought into anxiety ; 
for the idea of nature entered instead of God : but it was said 
to me, u Eemove the ideas of space and time, and you will see." 
I did so and then I saw ; and from that time I was enabled to 
think of God from eternity, and not of nature from eternity ; 
because God is in all time without time, and in all space without 
space, whereas nature in all time is in time, and in all space in 
space ; and nature with her time and space, must of necessity 
have a beginning and a birth, but not God who is without time, 
and space ; therefore nature is from God, not from eternity, but 
in time, that is, together with her time and space. 

329. After the chief teacher and the rest of the assembly 
had left me, some boys who were also engaged ia the gynmasian 
exercise, followed me home, and stood near me for a little while 
as I was writing: and lot at that instant they saw a moth 
running upon my paper, and asked in surprise what was the 
name of that nimble little creature ? I said, "It is called a moth j 
and I will tell you some wonderful things respecting it. This 
little animal contains in itself as many members ana viscera aa 
there are in a camel, such as brains, hearts, pulmonary pipes, 
organs of sense, motion, and generation, a stomach, intestines, 
and several others ; and each of these organs consists of fibres, 
nerves, blood-vessels, muscles, tendons, membranes f and each 
of these of still purer parts, which escape the observation of the 
keenest eye." They then said that this little animal appeared 
to them iust like a simple substance; upon which I said, "There 

18 273 



329, 330 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

are nevertheless innumerable things within it I mention these 
things that you may know, that the case is similar in regard to 
every object which appears before you as one, simple and least, 
as well in your actions as in your affections and thoughts. I can 
assure you that every grain of thought, that every drop of your 
affection, is divisible ad infintium: and that in proportion as your 
ideas are divisible, so you are wise. Know then, that every thing 
divided is more and more multiple, and not more and more 
simple ; because what is continually divided approaches nearer 
and nearer to the infinite, in which all things are infinitely. What 
I am now observing to you is new and heretofore unheard of." 
When I concluded, the boys took their leave of me, and 
went to the chief teacher, and intreated him to take an opportu- 
nity to propose in the gymnasium somewhat new and unheard of 
as a problem. He inquired, " What?" they said, "That every 
thing divided is more and more multiple, and not more and 
more simple ; because it approaches nearer and nearer to the 
infinite, in which all things are infinitely :" and he pledged him- 
self to propose it, and said, U I see this, because I have per- 
ceived that one natural idea contains innumerable spiritual ideas; 
S>a, that one spiritual idea contains innumerable celestial ideas, 
erein is grounded the difference between the celestial wisdom 
of the angels of the third heaven, and the spiritual wisdom of 
the angels of the second heaven, and also tne natural wisdom 
of the angels of the last heaven and likewise of men." 

330. IHE SECOND MEMORABLE RELATION. I once heard a 
pleasant discussion between some men respecting the female sex, 
whether it be possible for a woman to love her husband, who 
constantly loves her own beauty, that is, who loves herself from 
her form. They agreed among themselves first, that women 
have two-fold beauty ; one natural, which is that of the face 
and body, and the other spiritual which is that of the love and 
manners ; they agreed also, that these two kinds of beauty are 
often divided in the natural world, and are always united i* the 
spiritual world ; for in the latter world beauty is the form of 
the love and manners; therefore after death it frequently 
happens that deformed women become beauties, and beautiful 
women become deformities. While the men were discussing 
this point, there came some wives, and said, u Admit of our 
presence ; because what you are discussing, you have learned by 
science, but we are taught it by experience ; and you likewise 
know so little of the love of wives, that it scarcely amounts to 
any knowledge. Do you know that the prudence of the wives' 
wisdom consists in hiding their love from their husbands in the 
inmost recess of their bosoms, or in the midst of their hearts 3" 
The discussion then proceeded ; and the FIEST CONCLUSION made 
by the men was, That every woman is willing to appear beau 
tiful as to face and manners, because she is born an affection of 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 330, 331 

love, and the form of this affection is beauty ; therefore a 
woman that is not desirous to be beautiful, is not desirous to 
love and to be loved, and consequently is not truly a woman. 
Hereupon the wives observed, "The beauty of a woman resides 
in soft tenderness, and consequently in exquisite sensibility ; 
hence comes the woman's love for the man, and the man's for 
the woman. This possibly you do not understand." The 
SECOND CONCLUSION of the men was, That a woman before 
marriage is desirous to be beautiful for the men, but after mar- 
riage, if she be chaste, for one man only, and not for the men. 
Hereupon the wives observed, " When the husband has sipped 
the natural beauty of the wife, he sees it no longer, but sees 
her spiritual beauty ; and from this he re-loves, and recalls the 
natural beauty, but under another aspect." The THIRD CON- 
CLUSION of their discussion was, That if a woman after mar- 
riage is desirous to appear beautiful in like manner as before 
marriage, she loves the men, and not a man : because a woman 
loving herself from her beauty is continually desirous that her 
beauty should be sipped ; and as this no longer appears to her 
husband, as you observed, she is desirous that it may be sipped 
by the men to whom it appears. It is evident that such a one 
has a love of the sex, and not a love of one of the sex. Here- 
upon the wives were silent ; yet they murmured, ""What woman 
is so void of vanity, as not to desire to seem beautiful to the 
men also, at the same time that she seems beautiful to one man 
only ?" These things were heard by some wives from heaven, 
who were beautiful, because they were heavenly affections. They 
confirmed the conclusions of the men ; but they added, " Let 
them only love their beauty and its ornaments for the sake of 
their husbands, and from tnem. 

331. Those three wives being indignant that the three con- 
clusions of the men were confirmed by the wives from heaven, 
said to the men, " You have inquired whether a woman that 
loves herself from her beauty, loves her husband ; we in our 
turn will therefore inquire whether a man who loves himself 
from his intelligence, can love his wife. Be present and hear." 
This was their FIEST CONCLUSION ; No wife loves her husband 
on account of his face, but on account of his intelligence in his 
business and manners: know therefore, that a wife unites herself 
with a man's intelligence and thereby with the man: there* 
fore if a man loves himself on account of his intelligence, he 
withdraws it from the wife into himself, whence comes disunion 
and not union : moreover to love his own intelligence is to be 
wise from himself, and this is to be insane ; therefore it is to 
love his own insanity. Hereupon the men observed, " Possibly 
the wife unites herself with the man's strength or ability." At 
this the wives smiled, saying, " There is no deficiency of ability 
while the man loves the wife from intelligence ; but there is ij 

275 



331, 332 CONJU&IAL LOVE 

he loves her from insanity. Intelligence consists in loving the 
wife only: and in this love there is no deficiency of ability ; but 
insanity consists in not loving the wife bnt the sex, and in this 
love there is a deficiency of ability. You comprehend this." 
The SECOND CONCLUSION was ; We women are born, into the love 
of the men's intelligence ; therefore if the men love their own 
intelligence, it cannot be united with its genuine love, which 
belongs to the wife ; and if the man's intelligence is not united 
with its genuine love, which belongs to the wife, it becomes 
insanity grounded in haughtiness, and conjugial love becomes 
cold. What woman in such case can unite her love to what is 
cold ; and what man can unite the insanity of his haughtiness 
to the love of intelligence ? But the men said, " Whence has 
a man honor from his wife but by her magnifying his intel- 
ligence ?" The wives replied, " From love, because love honors ^ 
and honor cannot be separated from love, but love may be from 
honor. Afterwards they came to this THIKD CONCLUSION; You 
seemed as if you loved your wives ; and you do not see that you 
are loved by them, and thus that you re-love; and that your 
intelligence is a receptacle : if therefore you love your intel- 
ligence in yourselves, it becomes the receptacle of your love ; 
and the love of proprium (or self-hood), since it cannot endure 
an equal, never becomes conjugial love; but so long as it pre- 
vails, so long it remains adulterous. Hereupon the men were 
silent; nevertheless they murmured, "What is conjugial love?" 
Borne husbands in heaven heard what passed, and confirmed 
thence the three conclusions of the wives. 



ON POLYGAMY. 

332. THE reason why polygamical marriages are absolutely 
condemned by the Christian world cannot be clearly seen by any 
one, whatever powers of acute and ingenious investigation he 
may possess, unless he be previously instructed, THAT THERE 

EXISTS A LOYE TEULY CONJUGIAL ; THAT THIS LOVE CAN ONLY 
KXI8T BETWEEN TWO ; NOB BETWEEN TWO, EXCEPT FROM THE 

LOBD ALONE; AND THAT INTO THIS LOVE is INSERTED HEAVEN 
WITH ALL ITS FELICITIES. Unless these knowledges precede, and 
as it were lay the first stone, it is in vain for the mind to desire 
to draw from the understanding any reasons for the condem- 
nation of polygamy by the Christian world, which should be 
satisfactory, and on which it may firmly stand, as a house upon 
its stone or foundation. It is well known, that the institution 
of monogamical marriage is founded on the Word of the Lord, 
276 



AND TfS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 832 

" That whosoever putteth away his wifa except on account oj 
whoredom, and marrieth another ', committeth adultery ; and that 
from the "beginning, or from the first establishment of marriages, 
it was {ordained}, that two should "become one flesh ; and that 
man should not separate what God hath joined together" Matt. 
dx. 3 12. But although the Lord spake these words from 
the divine law inscribed on marriages, still if the understanding 
cannot support that law by some reason of its own, it may so 
warp it by the turnings and windings to which it is accustomed, 
and by sinister interpretations, as to render its principle ob- 
scure and ambiguous, and at length affirmative negative ; 
affirmative, because it is also grounded in the civil law ; and ne- 
gative, because it is not grounded in a rational view of those 
words. Into this principle the human mind will fall, unless it 
be previously instructed respecting the above-mentioned know- 
ledges, which may be serviceable to the understanding as intro- 
ductory to its reasons : these knowledges are, that there exists a 
love truly conjugal ; that this love can only possibly exist be- 
tween two ; nor between two, except from the Lord alone ; and 
that into this love is inserted heaven with all its felicities. But 
these, and several other particulars respecting the condemnation 
of polygamy by the Christian world, we will demonstrate in the 
following order : I. Love truly conjugial can only exist with one 
wife, consequently neither can friendship) confidence, ability truly 
conjugial) and such conjunction of minds that two may be one 
flesh. II. Thus celestial blessednesses ', spiritual satisfactions, and 
natural delights, which from the beginning were provided for 
those who are in love truly conjugial, can only exist with one 
wife. III. All those things can only exist from the Lord alone / 
and they do not exist with any but those who come to him alone, 
and at the same time live according to his commandments. IV. 
Consequently ', love truly conjugial, with its felicities, can only 
exist with those who are of the Christian church. Y, Therefore 
a Christian is not allowed to marry more them one wife. Yl. If 
a Christian marries several wives, he commits not only natural 
"but also spiritual adultery : YII. The Israelitish nation was per- 
mitted to marry several wives, because they had not the Christian 
church^ and consequently love truly conjugial could not exist with 
them. YIIL At this day the Mahometans are permitted to 
marry several wives, because they do not acknowledge the Lord 
Jesus Christ to l>e one with Jehovah the Father, and thereby to be 
the God of heaven and earth / and hence they cannot receive love 
truly conjugial. IX. The Mahometan heaven is out of the Chris- 
tian heaven and is divided into two heavens , the inferior and the 
superior; and only those are elevated into their superior heaven 
who renounce concubines and live with one wife, and acknow- 
ledge our JLord as equal to God the father, to whom is given do- 
minion over heaven and earth. X. Polygamy is lasciviousness, 

Til 






332, 333 OONJUGIAL LOVE 

XI. Conjujial chastity, purity, and sanctity, cannot exist with 
$olygamists. XII. Polygamists, so long as they remain such, 
cannot become spiritual. XIII. Polygamy is not sin with those 
who live in it from a religious notion. XIV. That polygamy is 
not sin with those who are in ignorance respecting the Lord. 
XY. That of these, although polygamists, such are saved as ac- 
knowledge U-od, and from a religious notion live according to the 
civil laws of justice. XYL But none either of the latter or^ of 
the former can le associated with the angels in the Christian 
heavens. We proceed to an explanation of each article. 

333. I. LoYE TRULY CONJUGIAL CAN ONLY EXIST WITH ONE 
WIFE, CONSEQUENTLY NEITHER CAN FRIENDSHIP, CONFIDENCE, 
ABILITY TRULY CONJUGIAL, AND SUCH A CONJUNCTION OF MINDS 

THAT TWO MAY BE ONE FLESH. That love truly coivjugial is at 
this day so rare as to be generally unknown, is a subject which 
has been occasionally inquired into above ; that nevertheless 
such love actually exists, was demonstrated in its proper chapter, 
and occasionally in following chapters. But apart from such 
demonstration, who does not know that there is such a love, 
which, for excellency and satisfaction, is paramount to all other 
loves, so that all other loves in respect to it are of little account ? 
That it exceeds self-love, the love of the world, and even the love 
of life, experience testifies in a variety of cases. Have there not 
been, and are there not still, instances of men, who for a woman, 
the dear and desired object of their wishes, prostrate themselves 
on their knees, adore her as a goddess, and submit themselves as 
the vilest slaves to her will and pleasure? a plain proof that this 
love exceeds the love of self. Have there not been, and are there 
not still instances of men, who for such a woman, make light of 
wealth, yea of treasures presented in prospect, and are also pro- 
digal of those which they possess ? a plain proof that this love 
exceeds the love of the world. Have there not been, and are 
there not still, instances of men who for such a woman, account 
life itself as worthless, and desire to die rather than be disap- 
pointed in their wishes, as is evidenced by the many fatal com- 
bats between rival lovers on such occasions? a plain proof that 
this love exceeds the love of life. Lastly, have there not been, 
and are there not still, instances of men, who for such a woman, 
have gone raving mad in consequence of being denied a place in 
her favor ? From such a commencement of this love in several 
cases, who cannot rationally conclude, that, from its essence, it 
holds supreme dominion over every other love ; and that the 
man's soul in such case is in it, and promises itself eternal 
blessedness with the dear and desired object of its wishes! 
And who can discover, let him make what inquiry he pleases, 
any other cause of this than that he has devoted his soul and 
heart to one woman ? for if the lover, while he ia in that state, 
had the offer made him of choosing out of the whole sex the wor 
278 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 333 335 

thiest, the richest, and the most beautiful, would he not despise 
the offer, and adhere to her whom he had already chosen, his 
heart being riveted to her alone ?" These observations are made 
in order that you may acknowledge, that conjugial love of such 
super-eminence exists, while one of the sex alone is loved. What 
understanding which with quick discernment attends to a chain 
of connected reasonings, cannot hence conclude, that if a lover 
from his inmost soul constantly persisted in love to that one, he 
would attain those eternal blessednesses which he promised him* 
self before consent, and promises in consent ? That he also does 
attain them if he comes to the Lord, and from him lives a life of 
true religion, was shewn above. "Who but the Lord enters the 
life of man from a superior principle, and implants therein in- 
ternal celestial joys, and transfers them to the derivative prin- 
ciples which follow in order ; and the more so, while at the 
same time he also bestows an enduring strength or ability ? It 
is no proof that such love does not exist, or cannot exist, to 
urge that it is not experienced in one's self, and in this or thfi 
person. 

334. Since love truly conjugial unites the souls and hearts of 
two persons, therefore also it is united with friendship, and by 
friendship with confidence, and makes each conjugial, and so 
exalts them above other friendships and confidences, that as that 
love is the chief love, so also that friendship and that confidence 
are the chief: that this is the case also with ability, is plain from 
several reasons, some of which are discovered in the SECOND 
MEMORABLE RELATION that follows this chapter ; and from this 
ability follows the endurance of that love. That by love truly 
conjugial two consorts become one flesh, was shewn in a separate 
chapter, from n. 156 183. 

335. II. THUS CELESTIAL BLESSEDNESS, SPIRITUAL SATIS- 
FACTIONS, AND NATURAL DELIGHTS, WHICH FROM THE BEGINNING* 
WERE PROVIDED FOR THOSE WHO ARE IN LOVE TRTJLY CONJTOIAL, 

CAN ONLY EXIST WITH ONE WIFE. They are called celestial 
blessednesses, spiritual satisfactions, and natural delights, be- 
cause the human mind is distinguished into three regions, of 
which the highest is called celestial, the second spiritual, and 
the third natural; and those three regions, with such as are 
principled in love truly conjugial, are open, and influx follows in 
order according to the openings. And as the pleasantnesses of 
that love are most eminent in the highest regions, they are per- 
ceived as blessednesses, and as in the middle region they are leaa 
eminent, they are perceived as satisfactions, and lastly, in the 
lowest region, as delights : that there are such blessednesses, 
satisfactions, and delights, and that they are perceived and felt, 
appears from the MEMORABLE DELATIONS in which they are 
described. The reason why all those happinesses were from the 
beginning provided for those who are principled in love truly 

279 



335 -337 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

conjngial, is, because there is an infinity of all blessednesses in 
the Lord, and he is divine love ; and it is the essence of love tc 
desire to communicate all its goods to another whom it loves ; 
therefore together with man he created that love, and inserted 
in it the faculty of receiving and perceiving those blessednesses. 
Who is of so dull and doting an apprehension as not to be able 
to see, that there is some particular love into which the Lord has 
collected all possible blessings, satisfactions, and delights ? 

336. HI. ALL THOSE THINGS CAN ONLY EXIST FEOM THS 

IiORD ALOOT ; AND THEY DO NOT EXIST WITH ANY BUT TH08B3 
WHO COMB TO HIM ALONE, AND LIVE ACCORDING- TO HIS COM- 
MANDMENTS. This has been proved above in many places ; to 
which proofs it may be expedient to add, that all those blessings, 
satisfactions, and delights can only be given by the Lord, and 
therefore no other is to be approached. What other can be 
approached, when by him all things were made which are made, 
John i. 3 ; when he is the God of heaven and earth, Matt, xxviii. 
18 : when no appearance of God the father was ever seen, or his 
voice heard, except through him, John i. 18; chap. v. 37 ; chap, 
xiv. 6 11 ? From these and very many other passages in the 
Word, it is evident that the marriage of love and wisdom, or of 
good and truth, from which alone all marriages derive their 
origin, proceeds from him alone* Hence it follows, that the 
above love with its felicities exists with none but those who come 
to him; and the reason why it exists with those who live accord* 
ing to his commandments, is, because he is conjoined with them 
by love, John xiv. 21 24. 

337. IY goNSEQOTNixy^^pyi.WTjLT ww$iAL y jpraj^ 

FELICITIES OAU ONLY EXIST WITH THOSE WHO AKE Oft ' THB 

C^isTiA^f pprBQH. The reason why conjugial love, such as 
was* 3 escribed in its proper chapter, n. 57 73, and in the 
following chapters, thus such as as it is in its essence, exists only 
with those who are of the Christian church, is, because that 
love is from the Lord alone, and the Lord is not so known else- 
where as that he can be approached as God ; also because that 
ove is according to the state of the church with every one, n. 
130, and the genuine state of the church is from no other source 
than from the Lord, and thus is with none but those who receive 
it from him. That these two principles are the beginnings, intro- 
ductions, and establishments of that love, has been already con- 
firmed by such abundance of evident and conclusive reasons, thajfc 
it is altogether needless to say any thing more on the subject* 
The reason why conjugal love is nevertheless rare in the Chris- 
tian world, n. 58 59, is, because few in that world approach the 
Lord, and among those there are some who indeed believe the 
church, but do not live accordingly ; besides other circumstances 
which are unfolded in the APOCALYPSE REVEALED, where the 
present state of the Christian church is fully described. But 
280 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 337 3311 

nevertheless it is an established truth, that love truly conjugial 
can only exist with those who are f the Christian church ; there- 
fore also from this ground polygamy is in that church altogether 
rejected and condemned : that this also is of the divine provi- 
dence of the Lord, appears very manifest to those who think 
justly concerning providence. 

338. V. THEREFORE A CHRISTIAN is NOT ALLOWED TO 
MABRY MORE THAN ONE WIFE. This follows as a conclusion 
from the confirmation of the preceding articles ; to which this is 
to be added, that the genuine conjugial principle is more deeply 
inserted into the minds of Christians, than of the Gentiles who 
have embraced polygamy ; and that hence the minds of Chris- 
tians are more susceptible of that love than the minds of poly- 
gamists ; for that conjugial principle is inserted in the interiors 
of the minds of Christians, because they acknowledge the Lord 
and his divine principle, and in the exteriors of their minds by 
civil laws. 

339. VI. IF A CHRISTIAN MARRIES SEVERAL WIVES, HE 

COMMITS NOT ONLY NATURAL BUT ALSO SPIRITUAL ADULTERY. 

That a Christian who marries several wives, commits natural 
adultery, is agreeable to the Lord's words, " That it is not law- 
ful to put away a wife^ because from the beginning they were 
created to be one flesh / and that he who putteth away a wife 
without just cause^ and marrieth another ', committeth adultery" 
Matt. xix. 3 12 ; thus still more does he commit adultery who 
does not put away his wife, but, while retaining her, connects 
himself with another. This law enacted by the Lord respecting 
marriages, has its internal ground in spiritual marriage ; for 
whatever the Lord spoke was in itself spiritual ; which is meant 
by this declaration, " The words that I speak unto you are spirit 
and are life,," John vi. 63. The spiritual [sense] contained 
therein is this, that by polygamical marriage in the Christian 
world, the marriage of the Lord and the Church is profaned ; in 
like manner the marriage of good and truth ; and still more the 
"Word, and with the "Word the church ; and the profanation of 
those things is spiritual adultery. That the profanation of the 
good and truth of the church derived from the Word corresponds 
to adultery, and hence is spiritual adultery ; and that the falsifi- 
cation of good and truth has a like correspondence, but in a less 
degree, may' be seen confirmed in the APOCALYPSE REVEALED, n, 
134. The reason why by polygamical marriages among Chris- 
tians the marriage of the Lord and the church is profaned, is, 
because there is a correspondence between that divine marriage 
and the marriages of Christians ; concerning which, see above, 
n. 83 102 ; which correspondence entirely perishes, if one wife 
is joined to another; and when it perishes, the married man is 
no longer a Christian The reason why by polygamical marriages 
among Christians the marriage of good and truth is profaned, is, 

281 



839, 340 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

because from tnis spiritual marriage are derived marriages in the 
world ; and the marriages of Christians differ from those of other 
nations in this respect, that as good loves truth, and truth good, 
and are a one, so it is with a wife and a husband ; therefore if a 
Christian should join one wife to another, he would rend asunder 
in himself that spiritual marriage ; consequently he would pro- 
fane the origin of his marriage, and would thereby commit 
spiritual adultery. That marriages in the world are derived from 
the marriage of good and truth, may be seen above, n. 116 131. 
The reason why a Christian by pplygamical marriage would pro- 
fane the Word and the church, is, because the Word considered 
in itself is the marriage of good and truth, and the church in like 
manner, so far as this is derived from the Word ; see above, n. 
128 131. Now since a Christian is acquainted with the Lord, 
possesses the Word, and has also the church from the Lord by the 
Word, it is evident that he, much more than one who is not a 
Christian, has the faculty of being capable of being regenerated, 
and there by of becoming spiritual, and also of attaining to love truly 
conjugal ; for these things are connected together. Since those 
Christians who marry several wives, commit not only natural but 
also at the same time spiritual adultery, it follows that the con- 
demnation of Christian polygamists after death is more grievous 
than that of those who* commit only natural adultery. Upon 
inquiring into their state after death, I received for answer, that 
heaven is altogether closed in respect to them ; that they appear 
in hell as lying in warm water in the recess of a bath, and that 
they thus appear at a distance, although they are standing on 
their feet, and walking, which is in consequence of their intestine 
frenzy ; and that some of them are thrown into whirlpools in the 
borders of the worlds. 

340. VII. THE ISRAELITISH NATION WAS PERMITTED TO 

MARRY SEVERAL WIVES, BECAUSE THEY HAD NOT THE CHRIS- 
TIAN CHURCH, AND CONSEQUENTLY LOVE TRULY CONJUGJAL 

COULD NOT EXIST WITH THEM. There are some at this day 
who are in doubt respecting the institution relative to mono- 
gamical marriages, or those of one man with one wife, and 
who are distracted by opposite reasonings on the subject ; being 
led to suppose that because polygamical marriages were openly 
permitted in the case of the Israelitish nation and its kings, 
and in the case of David and Solomon, they are also in them- 
selves permissible to Christians : but such persons have no 
distinct knowledge respecting the Israelitish nation and the 
Christian, or respecting the externals and internals of the 
church, or respecting the change of the church from external 
to internal by the Lord ; consequently they know nothing from 
interior judgment respecting marriages. In general it is to 
be observed, that a man is born natural in order that he may 
be made spiritual ; and that so long as he remains natural, he ia 
282 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 340 

in the night, and as it were asleep as to spiritual things ; and 
that in this case he does not even know the difference between 
the external natural man and the internal spiritual. That the 
Christian church was not with the Israelitish nation, is known 
from the Word ; for they expected the Messiah, as they still 
expect him, who was to exalt them above all other nations and 
people in the world : if therefore they had been told, and were still 
to be told, that the Messiah's kingdom is over the heavens, and 
thence over all nations, they would have accounted it an idle 
tale ; hence they not only did not acknowledge Christ or the 
Messiah, our Lord, when he came into the world, but also 
barbarously took him away out of the world. From these 
considerations it is evident, that the Christian church was not 
with that nation, as neither is it at this day ; and those with 
whom the Christian church is not, are natural men both exter- 
nally and internally: to such persons polygamy is not hurtful, 
since it is inherent in the natural man ; for, in regard to love in 
marriages, the natural man perceives nothing but what has re- 
lation to lust. This is meant by these words of the Lord, 
" That Moses ^ because of the HARDNESS OF THEIR HEARTS, suffered 
them to put away their wives : but that from the beginning it was 
not so" Matt. xix. 8. He says that Moses permitted it, in 
order that it may be known that it was not the Lord [who per- 
mitted it]. But that the Lord taught the internal spiritual 
man, is known from his precepts, and from the abrogation of 
the rituals which served only tor the use of the natural man ; 
from his precepts respecting washing, as denoting the purifica- 
tion of the internal man, Matt. xv. 1, 17 20 ; chap, xxiii. 25, 26 ; 
Mark vii. 14 23 ; respecting adultery, as denoting cupidity 
of the will, Matt. v. 28 ; respecting the putting away of wives, 
as being unlawful, and respecting polygamy, as not being 
agreeable to the divine law, Matt. xix. 3 9. These and several 
other things relating to the internal principle and the spiritual 
man, the Lord taught, because he alone opens the internals 
of human minds, and makes them spiritual, and implants 
these spiritual principles in the natural, that these also may 
partake of a spiritual essence : and this effect takes place if he 
is approached, and the life is formed according to his command 
ments, which in a summary are, to believe on him, and to 
shun evils because they are of and from the devil ; also to do 
good works, because they are of the Lord and from the Lord ; 
and in each case for the man to act as from himself, and at 
the same time to believe that all is done by the Lord through 
him. The essential reason why the Lord opens the internal spi- 
ritual man, and implants this in the external natural man, is, be- 
cause every man thinks and acts naturally, and therefore could 
not perceive any thing spiritual, and receives it in his natural 
Drinciple, unless the Lord had assumed the human natural, and 

283 



340, 341 CONJUOIAL LOTE 

had made this also divine. From these considerations now it 
appears a truth that the Israeli tish nation was permitted to 
marry several wives, because the Christian church was not with 
them. . 

341. VULL AT THIS BAT THE MAHOMETANS ABE PER- 
MITTED TO MARRY SEVEBAL WIVES, BECAUSE THEY DO NOT 

ACKNOWLEDGE THE LORD JESUS CHRIST TO BE ONE WITH 
JEHOVAH THE FATHER, AND THEREBY TO BE THE GOD OF 

HEAVEN AND EARTH, AND HENCE CANNOT RECEIVE LOVE TRULY 

CONJTJGIAL. The Mahometans, in conformity to the religion 
which Mahomet gave them, acknowledge Jesus Christ to be the 
Son of God and a grand prophet, and that he was sent into the 
world by God the Father to teach mankind ; but not that God 
the Father and he are one, and that his divine and human [prin- 
ciple] are one person, united as soul and body, agreeably to the 
faith of all Christians as grounded in the Athanasian Creed ; 
therefore the followers of Mahomet could not acknowledge our 
Lord to be any God from eternity, but only to be a perfect 
natural man ; and this being the opinion entertained by Ma- 
homet, and thence by his disciples, and they knowing that God 
is one, and that that God is he who created the universe, there- 
fore they could do no other than pass by our Lord in their 
worship ; and the more so; because they declare Mahomet also 
to be a grand prophet ; neither do they know what the Lord 
taught. It is owing to this cause, that the interiors of their 
minds, which in themselves are spiritual, could not be opened : 
that the interiors of the mind are opened by the Lord alone, 
may be seen just above, n. 340. The genuine cause why they 
are opened by the Lord, when he is acknowledged to be the 
God of heaven and earth, and is approached, and with those 
who live according to his commandments, is, because otherwise 
there is no conjunction, and without conjunction there is no 
reception. Man is receptible of the Lord's presence and of 
conjunction with him. To come to him causes presence, and 
to live according to his commandments causes conjunction ; his 
presence alone is without reception, but presence and conjunction 
together are with reception. On this subject I will impart the 
following new information from the spiritual world. Every one 
in that world, when he is thought of, is brought into view aa 
present ; but no one is conjoined to another except from the affec- 
tion of love; and this is insinuated by doing what he requires, 
and what is pleasing to him. This circumstance, which is 
common in the spiritual world, derives its origin from the Lord, 
who, in this same manner, is present and is conjoined. The 
above observations are made in order to shew, that the Maho* 
metans are permitted to marry several wives, because love truly 
eonjugial, which subsists only between one man and one wife, 
was not communicable to them; since from their 
234 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 341, 34:2 

tenets they did not acknowledge the Lord to be equal to God 
the Father, and so to be the God of heaven and earth. That 
conjugial love with every one is according to the state of the 
church, may be seen above, at n. 130, and in several other places. 
342. IX. THE MAHOMETAN HEAVEN is OUT OF THE CHEIS- 

TIAN HEAVEN AND IS DIVIDED INTO TWO HEAVENS, THE INFE&IOB 
AND THE SUPERIOR J AND ONLY THOSE AEE ELEVATED INTO THEIB 
SUPERIOR HEAVEN WHO RENOUNCE CONCUBINES AND LIVE WITH 
ONE WEFE, AND ACKNOWLEDGE OUR LoED AS EQUAL TO GOD THIS 

FATHER, T;> WHOM is GIVEN DOMINION OVER HEAVEN AND EARTH. 
Before we speak particularly to each of these points, it may be 
expedient to premise somewhat concerning the divine providence 
of the Lord in regard to the rise of Mahometanism. That this 
religion is received by more kingdoms than the Christian religion, 
may possibly be a stumbling-block to those who, while thinking 
of the divine providence, at the same time believe that no one 
can be saved that is not born a Christian ; whereas the Maho- 
metan religion is no stumbling-block to those who believe thst 
all things are of the divine providence. These inquire in what 
respect the divine providence is manifested in the Mahometan 
religion ; and they so discover in it this, that the Mahometaa 
religion ^ acknowledges our Lord to be the Son of God, the 
wisest of men, and a grand prophet, who came into the world 
to instruct mankind; but since the Mahometans have made the 
Koran the book of their religion, and consequently think much 
of Mahomet who wrote it, and pay him a degree of worship, 
therefore they think little 'respecting our Lord. In order to 
fehew more fully that the Mahometan religion was raised up by 
the Lord's divine providence to destroy tEe idolatries of several 
nations, we will give a detail of the subject, beginning with the 
origin of idolatries. Previous to the Mahometan religion ido- 
latrous worship prevailed throughout the whole world ; because 
the churches before the Lord's coming were all representative ; 
such also was the Israeli tish church, in which the tabernacle, 
the garments of Aaron, the sacrifices, all things belonging to the 
temple at Jerusalem, and also the statutes, were representative. 
The ancients likewise had the science of correspondences, whkh 
is also the science of representations, the very essential science 
of the wise, which was principally cultivated by the Egyptians, 
whence their hieroglypnics were derived. From that science 
they knew what was signified by animals and trees of every kind, 
likewise by mountains, hills, rivers, fountains, and also by the 
BUII, the moon, and the stars ; by means of this science also they 
had a knowledge of spiritual things ; since things represented!, 
which were sucn as relate to the spiritual wisdom of me angels, 
were the origins [of those which represent], Now since all their 
worship was representative, consisting of mere correspondences, 

285 



342, 343 OONJUGIAL LOVE 

therefore they celebrated it on mountains and bills, and also In 
groves and gardens ; and on this account they sanctified foun- 
tains, and in their adorations turned their faces to the rising 
sun : moreover they made graven horses, oxen, calves, and lambs \ 
yea, birds, fishes, and serpents ; and these they set in theii 
houses and other places, in order, according to the spiritual 
things of the church to which they corresponded, or which they 
represented. They also set similar images in their temples, as a 
means of recalling to their remembrance the holy things of wor- 
ship which they signified. In process of time, when the science 
of correspondences was forgotten, their posterity began to wor- 
ship the very graven images as holy in themselves, not knowing 
that the ancients, their fathers, did not see anything holy in 
them, but only that according to correspondences they repre- 
sented and thence signified holy things. Hence arose the 
idolatries which overspread the whole globe, as well Asia with 
its islands, as Africa and Europe. To the intent that all those 
idolatries might be eradicated, it came to pass of the Lord's 
divine providence, that a new religion, accommodated to the 
genius of the orientals, took its rise ; in which something from 
each testament of the Word was retained, and which taught that 
the Lord had come into the world, and that he was a grand pro- 
phet, the wisest of all, and the Son of God, This was effected 
by means of Mahomet, from whom that religion took its name. 
From these considerations it is manifest, that this religion was 
raised up of the Lord's divine providence, and accommodated, as 
we have observed, to the genius of the orientals, to the end that 
it might destroy the idolatries of so many nations, and might 
give its professors some knowledge of the Lord, before they came 
into the spiritual world, as is the case with every one after death. 
This religion would not have been received by so many nations, 
neither could it have eradicated their idolatries, unless it had 
been made agreeable to their ideas ; especially unless polygamy 
had, been permitted ; since without such permission, the orien- 
tals would have burned with the fire of filthy adultery more than 
the Europeans, and would have perished. 

34:3. The Mahometans also have their heaven ; for all in the 
universe, who acknowledge a God, and from a religious notion 
shuns evils as sins against him, are saved. That the Mahometan 
heaven is distinguished into two, the inferior and the superior, 
I have heard from themselves : and that in the inferior heaven 
they live with several wives and concubines as in the world ; but 
that those who renounce concubines and live with one wife, are 
elevated into the superior heaven. I have heard also that it is 
impossible for them to think of our Lord as one with the Father ; 
but that it is possible for them to think of him as his equal, and 
that he has dominion over heaven and earth, because he IB hi* 

286 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 34:3 346 

Son ; therefore such of them as are elevated by the Lord into 
their superior heaven, hold this belief. 

344. On a certain time I was led to perceive the quality of 
the heat of conjugial love with polygamists. I was conversing 
with one who personated Mahomet Mahomet himself is never 
present, but some one is substituted in his place, to the end that 
those who are lately deceased may as it were see him. This 
substitute, after I had been talking with him at a distance, sent 
me an ebony spoon and other things, which were proofs that they 
came from him ; at the same time a communication was opened 
for the heat of their conjugial love in that place, which seemed 
to me like the warm stench of a bath ; whereupon I turned 
myself away, and the communication was closed. 

345. X. POLYGAMY is LASCIVIOUSNESS. The reason of this 
is, because its love is divided among several, and is the love of 
the sex, and the love of the external or natural man, and thus ia 
not conjugial love, which alone is chaste. It is well known that 
polygumical love is divided among several, and divided love ia 
not conjugial love, which cannot be divided from one of the sex; 
hence the former love is lascivious, and polygamy is lascivious- 
ness. Polygamical love is the love of the sex, differing from it 
only in this respect, that it is limited to a number, which the 
polygamist may determine, and that it is bound to the observance 
of certain laws enacted for the public good ; also that it is allowed 
to take concubines at the same time as wives ; and thus, as it is 
the love of the sex, it is the love of lasciviousness. The reason 
why polygamical love is the love of the external or natural man 
is, because it is inherent in that man ; and whatever the natural 
man does from himself is evil, from which he cannot be released 
except by elevation into the internal spiritual man, which is 
effected solely by the Lord ; and evil respecting the sex, by 
which the natural man is influenced, is whoredom ; but since 
whoredom is destructive of society, instead thereof was induced 
its likeness, which is called polygamy. Every evil into which a 
man is born from his parents, is implanted in his natural man, 
but not any in his spiritual man; because into this he is born from 
the Lord. From what has now been adduced, and also from 
several other reasons, it may evidently be seen, that polygamy 
is lasciviousness. 

346. XL CONJTKHAL CHASTITY, PTJEITY, AND SANCTITY CAN- 
NOT EXIST WITH POLYGAMISTS. This follows from what has been 
just now proved, and evidently from what was demonstrated in 
the chapter ON THE CHASTE PKINCIPLE AND THE NON-CHASTE; 
especially from these articles of that chapter, namely, that a 
chaste, pure, and holy principle is predicated only of monogamica 
marriages, or of the marriage of one man with oue wife, n. 141 
also, that love truly conjugial is essential chastity, and that hence 
all the delights of that love, even the ultimate, are chaste, u 

287 



3i6 349 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

143, 144 ; and moreover from what was adduced in the chapter 
ON LOVE TRULY coNJUGiAL, namely, that love truly conjugial, 
which is that of one man with one wife, from its origin and cor- 
respondence, is celestial, spiritual, holy, and clean above every 
other love, n. 64. Now since chastity, purity, and sanctity exist 
only in love truly conjugial, it follows, that it neither does nor 
can exist in polygamical love. 

347. XII. A POLYGAMIST, SO LONG AS HE REMAINS SUCH, 

OANKOT BECOME SPIRITUAL. To become spiritual is to be 
elevated out of the natural, that is, out of the light and heat of 
the world, into the light and heat of heaven. Respecting this 
elevation no one knows anything but he that is elevated ; never- 
theless the natural man, although not elevated, perceives no 
other than that he is ; because he can elevate his understanding 
into the light of heaven, and think and talk spiritually, like the 
spiritual man ; but if the will does not at the same time follow 
the understanding to its altitude, he is still not elevated ; for he 
does not remain in that elevation, but in a short time lets him- 
self down to his will, and there fixes his station. It is said the 
will, but it is the love that is meant at the same time ; because 
the will is the receptacle of the love ; for what a man loves, that 
he wills. From these few considerations it may appear, that a 
polygamist, so long as he remains such, or what is the same, a 
natural man, so long as he remains such, cannot be made 
spiritual. 

348. XIII. POLYGAMY is NOT SIN WITH THOSE WHO LIVE 
IN IT FROM A RELIGIOUS NOTION. All that which is contrary to 
religion is believed to be sin, because it is contrary to Grod ; 
and on the other hand, all that which agrees with religion, is 
believed not to be sin, because it agrees with God ; and as poly- 
gamy existed with the sons of Israel from a principle of religion, 
and exists at this day with the Mahometans, it could not, and 
cannot, be imputed to them as sin. Moreover, to prevent ita 
being sin to them, they remain natural, and do not become 
spiritual ; and the natural man comiot see that there is any sin 
in such things as belong to the received religion : this is seen 
only by the spiritual man. It is on this account, that although 
the Mahometans are taught by the Koran to acknowledge our 
Lord as the Son of God, still they do not corne to him, but to 
Mahomet ; and so long they remain natural, and consequently 
do not know that there is in polygamy any evil, or indeed any 
lasciviousness. The Lord also saith, "'If ye were Hind ye would 
not ham sin ; but now ye say^ We see> therefore your sin re* 
maineth" John ix. 41. Since polygamy cannot convict them ot 
sin, therefore after death they have their heavens, n. 342, 343 ; 
and their joys there according to life. 

349. XIV. POLYGAMY is NOT SIN WITH THOSE WHO ARE 

IN IGNORANCE RESPECTING THE LORD. This is, becaUSC loV0 

288 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 34:9 85! 

truly conjugial is from the Lord alone, and cannot be imparted 
by the Lord to any but those who know him, acknowledge him, 
believe on him, and live the life which is from him ; and those 
to whom that love cannot be imparted know no other than that 
the love of the sex and conjugial love are the same thing; con- 
sequently also polygamy. Moreover, polygamists, who know 
nothing of the Lord, remain natural : for a man (homo) is made 
spiritual only from the Lord ; and that is not imputed to the 
natural man as sin^ which is according to the laws of religion 
and at the same time of society : he also acts according to his 
reason ; and the reason of the natural man is in mere darkness 
respecting love truly conjugial ; and this love in excellence is 
spiritual. Nevertheless the reason of polygamists is taught from 
experience, that both public and private peace reauire that 
promiscuous lust in general should be restrained, and be left to 
every one within his own house : hence comes polygamy. 

350. It is well known, that a man (homo) by birth is viler 
than the beasts. All the beasts are born into the knowledges 
corresponding to the love of their life ; for as soon as they are 
born, or are batched from the egg, they see, hear, walk, know 
their food, their dam, their friends and foes ; and soon after this 
they show attention to the sex, and to the affairs of love, and 
also to the rearing of their offspring. Man alone, at his birth, 
knows nothing of this sort ; for no knowledge is connate to hirn ; 
he has only the faculty and inclination of receiving those things 
which relate to knowledge and love ; and if he does not receive 
these from others, he remains viler than a beast. That man is 
born in this condition, to the end that he may attribute nothing 
to himself, but to others, and at length every thing of wisdom 
and of the love thereof to God alone, and may hence become an 
image of God, see the MEMORABLE RELATION, n. 132 130. 
From these considerations it follows, that a man who does not 
learn from others that the Lord has come into the world, and 
that he is God, and has only acquired some knowledge respect- 
ing religion and the laws of his country, is no.t in fault if he 
thinks no more of conjugial love than of the love of the sex, 
and if he believes polygamical love to be the only conjugial love. 
The Lord leads such persons in their ignorance; and by his 
divine auspices providently withdraws from the imputation of 
guilt those who, from a religious notion, shun evils as sins, to 
the end that they may be saved ; for every man is born for heaven, 
and no one for hell ; and every one comes into heaven [by influ- 
ence] from the Lord, and into hell [by influence] from himself. 

351, XV. OF THESE, ALTHOUGH POLYGAMISTS, SUCH ABB! 
BAVED AS ACKNOWLEDGE A GOD, AND FBOM A RELIGIOUS NOTION 
LIVE ACCORDING TO THE CIVIL LAWS OF JUSTICE. All throughout 

the world who acknowledge a God and live according to the 
civil laws of justice from a religious notion, are saved. By the 

19 289 



351 j 352 430NJTJGIAL LOVE 

civil laws of justice we mean such precepts as are contained m 
the Decalogue, which forbid murder, theft, adultery, and false 
witness. These precepts are the civil laws of justice in all the 
kingdoms of the earth ; for without them no kingdom could 
subsist. But some are influenced in the practice of them by fear 
of the penalties of the law, some by civil obedience, and some 
also by religion ; these last are saved, because in such case God 
is in them ; and every one, in whom God is, is saved. Who does 
cot see, that among the laws given to the sons of Israel, aftei 
they had left Egyj)t, were those which forbid murder, adultery, 
theft, and false witness, since without those laws their com- 
munion or society could not subsist ? and yet these laws were 
promulgated by Jehovah God upon Mount Sinai with a stupen- 
dous miracle : but the cause of their being so promulgated was, 
that they might be also laws of religion, and thus that the people 
might practise them not only for the sake of the good of society, 
but also for the sake of God, and that when they practised them 
from a religious notion for the sake of God, they might be saved. 
From these considerations it may appear, that the pagans, who 
acknowledge a God, and live according to the civil laws of justice, 
are saved ; since it is not their fault that they know nothing of 
the Lord, consequently nothing of the chastity of the marriage 
with one wife. For it is contrary to the divine justice to con- 
demn those who acknowledge a God, and from their religion 
practise the laws of justice, which consist in shunning evils be- 
cause they are contrary to God, and in doing what is good be- 
cause it is agreeable to God. 

352. X. V I. BlJT NONE EITHER OF THE LATTER OR OF THE 
FORMER CAN BE ASSOCIATED WITH THE ANGELS IN THE CHRIS- 
TIAN HEAVENS. The reason of this is, because in the Christian 
heavens there are celestial light, which is divine truth, and 
celestial heat, which is divine love ; and these two discover the 
quality of goods and truths, and also of evils and falses ; hence, 
tiiere is no communication between the Christian and the Maho- 
metan heavens, and in like manner between the heavens of the 
Gentiles. If there were a communication, none could have been 
saved but those who were in celestial light and at the same time 
in celestial heat from the Lord ; yea neither would these be 
saved if there was a conjunction of the heavens: for in conse- 
quence of conjunction all the heavens would so far fall to decay 
that the angels would not be able to subsist ; for an unchaste an 
lascivious principle would flow from the Mahometans into the 
Christian neaven, which in that heaven could not be endured ; 
and a chaste and pure principle would flow from the Christiana 
into the Mahometan heaven, which again could not be there 
endured. In such case, in consequence of communication and 
thence of conjunction, the Christian angels would become natural 
and thereby adulterers; or if they remained spiritual, they would 
290 



AHD ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 352 35^ 

be continually sensible of a lascivious principle about them, 
which would intercept all the blessedness of their life. The case 
would be somewhat similar with the Mahometan heaven : for the 
spiritual principles of the Christian heaven would continually 
encompass and torment them, and would take away all the 
delight of their life, and would moreover insinuate that poly- 
gamy is sin, whereby they would be continually chided. Thia 
is the reason why all the heavens are altogether distinct from 
each other, so that there is no connection between them, except 
by an influx of light and heat from the Lord out of the sun, in 
the midst of which he is : and this influx enlightens and vivifies 
every one according to his reception ; and reception is according 
to religion. This communication is granted, but not a commu- 
nication of the heavens with each other. 

**-# -x *# * # 

353. To the above I shall add TWO MEMORABLE RELATIONS* 
FIRST. I was once in the midst of the angels and heard their 
conversation. It was respecting intelligence and wisdom ; that 
a man perceives no other than that each is in himself, and thus 
that whatever he thinks trom his understanding and intends 
from his will, is from himself; when nevertheless not the least 
portion thereof is from the man, but only the faculty of receiv- 
ing the things of the understanding and the will from God : and 
as every man (homo) is by birth inclined to love himself, it was 
provided from creation, to prevent man's perishing by self-love 
and the conceit of his own intelligence, that that love of the man 
(w>) should be transferred into the wife, and that in her should 
be implanted from her birth a love for the intelligence and wis- 
dom of her husband, and thereby a love for him ; therefore the 
wife continually ittracts to herself her husband's conceit of hia 
own intelligence, and extinguishes it in him, and vivifies it in*, 
herself, and thus changes it into conjugial love, and fills it with 
unbounded pleasantnesses. This is provided by the Lord, lest 
the conceit of his own intelligence should so far infatuate the 
man, as to lead him to believe that he has understanding and; 
wisdom from himself and not from the Lord, and thereby make- 
him willing to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,, 
and thence to believe himself like unto God, and also a god, aa 
the serpent, which was the love of his own intelligence, said and 
persuaded him ; wherefore the man (homo) after eating was cast 
out of paradise, and the way to the tree of life was guarded by a 
cherub. Paradise, spiritually understood, denotes intelligence; 
to eat of the tree of life, in a spiritual sense, is to be intelligent 
and wise from the Lord ; and to eat of the tree of the knowledge- 
of good and evil, in a spiritual sense, is to be intelligent and 
wise from self. 

354. The angels having finished this conversation departed ; 
and there came two priosts, tosretfer with a man who in the 

291 



354, 355 CONJTGIAL LOVE 

world had been an ambassador of a kingdom, and to then* 
I related what I had heard from the angels. On hearing this 
they began to dispute with each other about intelligence and 
wisdom, and the prudence thence derived, whether they are 
from Grod or from man. The dispute grew warm. All three 
in heart believed that they are from man because they are in 
man, and that the perception and sensation of its being so con- 
firm it ; but the priests, who on this occasion were influenced 
by theological zeal, said, that there is nothing of intelligence 
and wisdom, and thus nothing of prudence from man; arid 
when the ambassador retorted, that in such case there is nothing 
of thought from man, they assented to it. But as it was per- 
ceived in heaven, that all the three were in a similar belief, it 
was said to the ambassador, " Put on the garments of a priest, 
and believe that you are one, and then speak." He did so ; and 
instantly he declared aloud that nothing of intelligence and wis- 
dom, and consequently nothing of prudence, can possibly exist 
but from God ; and he proved it with his usual eloquence full of 
rational arguments. It is a peculiar circumstance in the spi- 
ritual world, that a spirit thinks himself to be such as is denoted 
by the garment he wears ; because in that world the understand- 
ing clothes every one. Afterwards, a voice from heaven said to 
the two priests, " Put off your own garments, and put on those 
of political ministers, and believe yourselves to be such." They 
did so ; and in this case they at the same time thought from 
their interior self, and spoke from arguments which they had 
inwardly cherished in favor of man's own intelligence. At that 
instant there appeared a tree near the path; and it was said to 
them, u It is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil ; take 
heed to yourselves lest ye eat of it." Nevertheless all the three, 
infatuated by their own intelligence, burned with a desire to eat 
of it, and said to each other, " Why should not we? Is not the 
fruit good ?" And they went to it and eat of it. Immediately 
all the three, as they were in a like faith, became bosom friends ; 
and they entered together into the way of self-intelligence, which 
led into hell : nevertheless I saw them return thence, because 
they were not yet prepared. 

355. THE SECOND MEMOKABLTS RELATION. On a time as I 
was looking into the spiritual world, I saw in a certain green 
field some men, whose garments were like those worn by men of 
this world ; from which circumstance I knew that they were 
lately deceased. I approached them and stood near them, that 
J might hear what they were conversing about. Their conversa- 
tion was about heaven ; and one of them who knew something 
respecting it, said, " In heaven there are wonderful things, such 
as no one can believe unless he has seen them : there are para- 
disiacal gardens, magnificent palaces constructed according to the 
rales of architecture, because the work of the art itself, respleu* 
292 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 35i 

dent with gold ; in the front of which are columns of silver; and 
on the columns heavenly forms made of precious stones ; also 
houses of jasper and sapphire, in the front of which are stately 
porticos, through which the angels enter ; and within the houses 
handsome furniture, which no art or. words can describe. The 
angels themselves are of both sexes : there are youths and hus- 
bands, also maidens and wives : maids so beautiful, that nothing 
in the world bears any resemblance to their beauty ; and wives 
still more beautiful, who are genuine images of celestial love, 
and their husbands images of celestial wisdom ; and all these are 
ever approaching the full bloom of youth ; and what is more, 
they know no other love of the sex than conjugial love; and, 
what you will be surprised to hear, the husbands there have a 
perpetual faculty of enjoyment." "When the novitiate spirits 
Leard that no other love of the sex prevailed in heaven than 
conjugial love, and that they had a perpetual faculty of enjoy- 
ment, they smiled at each other, and said, " "What you tell us is 
incredible ; there cannot be such a faculty : possibly you are 
amusing us with idle tales." But at that instant a certain angel 
from heaven unexpectedly stood in the midst of them, and said, 
" Hear me, I beseech you ; I am an angel of heaven, and have 
lived now a thousand years with my wife, and during that time 
have been in the sameflower of my age in which you heresee me. 
This is in consequence of the conjugial love in which I have 
lived with my wile ; and I can affirm, that the above faculty haa 
been and is perpetual with me ; and because I perceive that, you 
believe this to be impossible, I will talk with you on the subject 
from a ground of rational argument according to the light of 
your understanding. You do not know anything of the primeval 
etate of man, which you call a state of integrity. In mat state 
all the interiors of the mind were open even to the Lord ; and 
hence they were in the marriage of love and wisdom, or of good 
and truth ; and as the good of love and the truth of wisdom 
perpetually love each other, they also perpetually desire to b$ 
united ; and when the interiors of the mind are open, the GO* 
jugial spiritual love flows down freely with its perpetual eu* 
deavour, and presents the above faculty. The very soul of a mat* 
(homo\ being in the marriage of good and truth, is not only in 
the perpetual endeavour of that union, but also in the perpetual 
cndeayour of the fructification and production of its own like- 
ness ; and since the interiors of a man even from the soul am 
open by virtue of that marriage, and the interiors continually 
regard as an end the effect in ultimates that they may exist, 
therefore that perpetual endeavor for fructifying and producing 
its like, which is the property of the soul, becomes also of the 
body ; and since the ultimate of the operation of the soul in the 
oody with two conjugial partners is into the ultimates of love 
therein, and those depend on the state of the soul, it is evident 

203 



855 CONJTTGIAL LOVE 

whence they derive tins perpetnality. Fructification also is per- 
petual, because the universal sphere of generating and propagat- 
ing the celestial things which are of love, and the spiritual things 
which are of wisdom, and thence the natural things which are of 
offspring, proceeds from the Lord, and fills all heaven and all the 
world ; and that celestial sphere fills the souls of all men, and 
descends through their minds into the body even to its ultimates, 
and gives the power of generating. But this cannot be the case 
vrith any but those with whom a passage is open from the soul 
through the superior and inferior principles of the mind into the 
body to its ultimates, as is the case with those who suffer them* 
selves to be led back by the Lord into the primeval state of crea- 
tion. I can confirm that now for a thousand years I have never 
wanted faculty, strength, or vigor, and that 1 ana altogether a 
stranger to any diminution of powers, which are continually 
renewed by the influx of the above-mentioned sphere, and in 
such case also cheer the mind (animum), and do not make it sad, 
as is the case with those who suffer the loss of those powers. 
Moreover love truly conjugial is just like the vernal heat, from 
the influx of which all things tend to germination and fructifica- 
tion ; nor is there any other heat in our heaven : wherefore with 
coujugial partners in that heaven there is spring in its perpetual 
conatuS) and it is this perpetual conatus from which the above 
virtue is derived. But fructifications with us in heaven are dif- 
ferent from those with men on earth. With us fructifications are 
spiritual, which are the fructifications of love and wisdom, or of 
good and truth: the wife from the husband's wisdom receives 
into herself the love thereof; and the husband from the love 
thereof in the wife receives into himself wisdom ; yea the wife is 
actually formed into the love of the husband's wisdom, which is 
effected by her receiving the propagations of his soul with the 
delight arising therefrom, in that she desires to be the love of her 
husband's wisdom: thus from a maiden she becomes a wife and a 
likeness. Hence also love with its inmost friendship with the 
wife, and wisdom with its happiness with the husband, are con- 
tinually increasing, and this to eternity. This is the state of the 
angels of heaven." When the angel had thus spoken, lie looked 
at those who had lately come from the world, and said to them, 
4 You know that, while you were in the vigor of love, you loved 
our married partners ; but when your appetite was gratified) you 
regarded them with aversion ; but you do not know that we in 
heaven do not love our married partners in consequence of that 
vigor, but that we have vigor in consequence of love and derived 
from it ; and that as we perpetually love our married partners, 
we have perpetual vigor : it therefore you can invert the state, 
you may be able to comprehend this. Does not he who per- 
petually loves a married partner, love her with the whole mind 
and with the whole body f for love turns every thing of the iniiid 
294 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS, 355 b 



and of the body to that which it loves ; and as this is done 
reciprocally, it conjoins the objects so that they become a one.'* 
He further said, "I will not speak to 1 yon of the conjugial love 
implanted from the creation in males and females, and of their 
inclination to legitimate conjunction, or of the faculty of proli- 
ficatipn in the males, which makes one with the faculty of mul- 
tiplying wisdom from the love of truth ; and that so far as a man 
loves wisdom from the love thereof, or truth from good, so far 
he is in love truly conjugial and in its attendant vigor," 

356, When he had spoken these words, the angel was silent ; 
and from the spirit of his discourse the novitiates comprehended 
that a perpetual faculty of enjoyment is communicable ; and as 
this consideration rejoiced their minds, they exclaimed, " how 
happy is the state of angels ! We perceive that you in the hea- 
vens remain for ever in a state of youth, and thence in the vigor 
of that age ; but tell us how we also may enjoy that vigor." 
The angel replied, " Shun adulteries as infernal, and approach 
the Lord, and you will possess it." They said, " We will do so." 
But the angel replied, "You cannot shun adulteries as infernal 
evils, unless you in like manner shun all other evils, because 
adulteries are the complex of all ; and unless you shun them, 
you cannot approach the Lord ; for the Lord receives no others." 
After this the angel took his leave, and the novitiate spirits 
departed sorrowful. 



OK JEALOTOY. 



357. THE subject of jealousy is here treated of, because it 
also has relation to conjugial love. There is a just jealousy and 
an unjust ; a just jealousy with married partners who mutually 
love each other, with whom it is a just and prudent zeal lest 
their conjugial love should be violated, and thence a just grief if 
it is violated ; and an unjust jealousy with those who are naturally 
suspicious, and whose minds are sickly in consequence of viscous 
and bilious blood. Moreover, all jealousy is by some accounted 
a vice ; which is particularly the case with whoremongers, who 
censure even a just jealousy. The term JEALOUSY (zdotyvia} is 
derived from JSELI TYPUS (the type of zeal), and there is a type 
or image of Just ^and also of unjust zeal; but we will explain 
these distinctions in the following series of articles ; I. Zeal, con- 
sidered in itself \ is like the ardent fire of love. IL The burning 
or flame of that love, which is ze&l^ u a spiritual turning orflame 9 
arising from an infestation and assault of the love. Ill The 
quality of & m<w?s (homo) zeal is according to the quality of hi* 



295 



858 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

lorn / thus it differs according as the low is good or evil. IV. 
The zeal of a good love and the zeal of an evil love are alike in 
ewternal$) l)ut altogether unlike in internals. V. The zeal of a 
good love in its internals contains a hidden store of love and 
friendship; "but the zeal of an evil love in its internals contains 
a hidden store of hatred and reveng& VL The seal of con- 
jugial love is called jealousy. VII. Jealousy is like an ardent 
fire against those who infest love exercised towards a married 
partner, and like a terrible fear for the loss of that love, VIII* 
There is spiritual jealousy with monogamists, and natural with 
polygamists. IX. Jealousy with those married partners who ten* 
aerly love each other^ is a just grief grounded in sound reason 
lest conjugial love should be divided^ and should thereby perish. 
X. Jealousy with married partners who do not love each other, 
is grounded in several causes : arising in some instances from va- 
rious mental weaknesses. XL In some instances there is not any 
jealousy ; and this also from various causes. XII. There is a 
jealousy also in regard to concubines, but not such as in regard to 
wives. XIII. Jealousy likewise exists among beasts and birds. 
XIV. The jealousy of men and husbands is different from that of 
women ana wives. We proceed to an explanation of the above 
articles. 

358. I. ZEAL, CONSIDERED IN ITSELF, is LIKE THE ARDENT 
EXBE OF LOYE. What jealousy is cannot be known, unless it be 
known what zeal is ; for jealousy is the zeal of conjugial love. 
The reason why zeal is like the ardent fire of love is, because 
zeal is of love, which is spiritual heat, and this in its origin ia 
like fire. In regard to the first position, it is well known that 
zeal is of love ; nothing else is meant by being zealous, and 
acting from zeal, than acting from the force of love : but since 
when it exists, it appears not as love, but as unfriendly and 
hostile, offended at and fighting against him who hurts the love, 
therefore it may also be called the defender and protector of love ; 
for all love is of such a nature that it bursts into indignation and 
anger, yea^into fury, whenever it is disturbed in its delights: 
therefore if a love, e^pecially^ the ruling love, be touched, there 
ensues an emotion of the mind ; and if it be hurt, there ensues 
wrath. From these considerations it may be seen, that zeal ia 
not the highest degree of the love, but that it is ardent love. 
The love of one, and the correspondent love of another, are like 
two confederates ; but when the love of one rises up against the 
love of another, they become like enemies ; because love is the 
esse o^f a man's life ; therefore he that assaults the love, assaults 
the^life itself; and in such case there ensues a state of wrath 
against the assailant, like the state of every man whose life is 
attempted bjr another. Such wrath is attendant on every love, 
even that which is most pacific, as is very manifest in the case of 
liens, geese, and birds of every kind ; which, without any fear. 

296 J f 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 358 Sftl 

rise against and fly at those who injure their Coring, or rob them 
of their meat That some beasts are seized with anger, and wild 
beasts with fury, if their young are attacked, or their prey taken 
from them, is well known. The reason why love is said to burn 
like fire is, because love is spiritual heat, originating in the fire 
of the angelic sun, which is pure love. That love is heat as it 
were from fire, evidently appeal's from the heat of living bodies, 
which is from no other source than from their love ; also from 
the circumstance that men grow warm and are inflamed accord 
in^ to the exaltation of their love. From these considerations 
it is manifest, that zeal is like the ardent fire of love. 

359. II. THE BURNING OB FLAME OF THAT LOVE, WHICH 

IS ZEAL, IS A SPIRITUAL BURNING OR FLAME, ARISING FROM AN 

INFESTATION AND ASSAULT OF THE LOVE. That zeal is a spiritual 
burning or flame, is evident from what has been said above. As 
love in the spiritual world- is heat arising from the sun of that 
world, therefore also love at a distance appears there as flame: it 
is thus that celestial love appears with the angels of heaven; and 
thus also infernal love appears with the spirits of hell ; but it is 
to be observed, that that flame does not burn like the flame of 
the natural world. The reason why zeal arises from an assault 
of the love is, because love is the heat of every one's life; where- 
fore when the life's love is assaulted, the life's heat kindles itself, 
resists, and bursts forth against the assailant, and acts as an 
enemy by virtue of its own strength and ability, which is like 
flame bursting from a fire upon him who stirs it : that it is like 
fire, appears from the sparkling of the eyes from the face being 
inflamed, also from the tone of the voice and the gestures. This 
is the effect of love, as being the heat of life, to prevent its 
extinction, and with it the extinction of all cheerfulness, vivacity, 
and perceptibility of delight, grounded in its own love. 

360. It may be expedient here to show how the- love by being 
assaulted is inflamed and kindled into zeal, like fire into flame. 
Love resides in a man's will ; nevertheless it is not inflamed in 
the will itself, but in the understanding ; for in the will it is like 
fire, and in the understanding like flame. Love in the will 
knows nothing about itself, because there it is not sensible of 
anything relating to itself, neither does it there act from itself; 
but this is done in the understanding and its thought : when 
therefore the will is assaulted, it provokes itself to anger in the 
understanding, which is effected by various reasonings. These 
reasonings are like pieces of wood, which the fire inflames, and 

-which thence burn: they are therefore like so much fuel, or so 
many combustible matters which give occasion to that spiritual 
flame, which is very variable. 

361. We will here unfold the true reason why a man becomes 
inflamed in consequence of an assault of his love. The human 
form in its inmost principles is from creation a form of love and 

297 



561, 362 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

wisdom. In man there are all the affections of love, and thence 
all the perceptions of wisdom, compounded in the most perfect 
order, so as to make together what is unanimous, and thereby a 
one. Those affections and perceptions are rendered substantial ; 
for substances are their subjects. Since therefore the human 
form is compounded of these, it is evident that, if the love ia 
assaulted, this universal form also, with everything therein, ia 
assaulted at the same instant, or together with it. And as the 
desire to continue in its form is implanted from creation in all 
living things, therefore this principle operates in every general 
compound by derivation from the singulars of which it is com- 
pounded, and in the singulars by derivation from the general 
compound : hence when the love is assaulted, it defends itself 
by its understanding, and the understanding [^defends itself] 
by rational and imaginative principles, whereby it represents to 
itself the event ; especially by such as act in unity with the love 
which is assaulted : and unless this was the case the above form 
would wholly fall to pieces, in consequence of the privation of 
that love. Hence then it is that love, in order to resist assaults", 
hardens the substance of its form, and sets them erect, as it 
were in crests, like so many sharp prickles, that is, crisps itself; 
such is the provoking of love whicn is called zeal : wherefore if 
there is no opportunity of resistance, there arise anxiety and 
grief, because it foresees the extinction of interior life with its 
delights. But on the other hand, if the love is favored and 
cherished, the above form unbends, softens, and dilates itself; 
and the substances of the form become gentle, mild, ineek, and 
alluring. 

362. IIL THE QUALITY OF A MAST'S ZEAL is ACCORDED 

TO THE QUALITY OF HIS LOVE ; THUS IT DIFFERS ACOOKDING- A8 

THE LOVE is GOOD OB EVIL. Since zeal is of love, it follows 
that its quality is such as the quality of the love is ; and as there 
are in general two loves, the love of what is good and thence of 
what is true, and the love of what is evil and thence of what is 
false, hence in general there is a zeal in favor of what is good 
and thence of what is true, and in favor of what is evil and 
thence of what is false. But it is to be noted, that of each love 
there is an infinite variety. This is very manifest from the angels 
of heaven and the spirits of hell ; both of whom in the spiritual 
world are the forms of their respective love ; and yet there is not 
one angel of heaven absolutely like another as to face, speech, 
gait, gesture, and manner ; nor any spirit of hell ; yea neither 
can there be to eternity, howsoever they be multiplied into 
myriads of myriads. Hence it is evident, that there is an infinite 
variety of loves, because there is of their forms. The case is 
the same with zeal, as being of the love ; the zeai of one can- 
not be absolutely like or the same with the zeal of another. Ia 
general there are the zeal of a good and the zeal of an evil lo v*e. 
298 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 363 365 

363. IV. THE ZEAL OF A GOOD LOVE AND THE ZEAL OF 

AN EVIL LCVE AJBE ALIKE IK EXTERNALS, BUT ALTOGETHER 

DIFFEBENT IN INTERNALS. Zeal in externals, with every one, 
appears like anger and wrath ; for it is love enkindled and in- 
flamed to defend itself against a violator, and to remove him. 
The reason why the zeal of a good love and the zeal of an evil 
love appear alike in externals is, because in both cases love 
while it is in zeal, burns ; but with a good man only in externals, 
whereas with an evil man it burns in both externals and inter- 
nals ; and when internals are not regarded, the zeals appear 
alike in externals ; but that they are altogether different in 
internals will be seen in the next article. That zeal appears in 
externals like anger and wrath, may be seen and heard from all 
those who speak and act from zeal ; as for example, from a priest 
while he is preaching from zeal, the tone of whose voice is high, 
vehement, sharp, and harsh ; his face is heated and perspires ; 
he exerts himself, beats the pulpit, and calls forth fire from hell 
against those who do evil: and so in many other cases. 

364. In order that a distinct idea may be formed of zeal as 
influencing the good, and of zeal as influencing the wicked, and 
of their dissimilitude, it is necessary that some idea be previously 
formed of men's internals and externals. For this purpose, let 
us take a common idea on the subject, as being adapted to 
general apprehension, and let it be exhibited by the case of a 
nut or an almond, and their kernels. With the good, the 
internals are like the kernels within as to their soundness and 
goodness, encompassed with their usual and natural husk ; with 
the wicked, the case is altogether different, their internals art* 
like kernels which are either not eatable from their bitterness, 
or rotten, or worm-eaten ; whereas their externals are like the 
shells or husks of those kernels, either like the natural shells 01 
husks, or shining bright like shell-fish, or speckled like the 
stones called irises. Buch is the appearance of their externals, 
within which the above-mentioned internals lie concealed* The 
case is the same with their zeal. * 

365. V. THE ZEAL OF A GOOD LOITE IN ITS INTERNALS 

CONTAINS A HIDDEN STOEE OF LOVE AM> FRIENDSHIP; BUT THE 

ZEAL OF AN EVIL LOVE IN ITS INTEENAXS CONTAINS A HIDDEN 

STOBE OF HATBED AND EEVENGE. It was said just above, that 
zeal in externals appears like anger and wrath, as well with those 
who are in a good love, as with those who are in an evil love : 
but whereas the internals are different, the anger and wrath in 
each case differs from that of the other, and the difference is as 
follows : 1. The zeal of a good love is like a heavenly flame, 
which in one case bursts out upon another, but only defends itself, 
and that against a wicked person, as when he rushes into the fire 
and is burnt ; but the zeal of an evil love is like an infernal 
flame, which of itself bursts forth and rushes on, and is desirous 

299 



365 368 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

to consume another* 2. The zeal of a good love instantly burna 
away and is allayed when the assailant ceases to assault ; but 
the zeal of an evil love continues and is not extinguished. 3. 
This is because the internal of him who is in the love of good 
is it in itself mild, soft, friendly, and benevolent; wherefore 
when his external, with a view of defending itself, is fierce, 
harsh, and haughty, and thereby acts with rigor, still it is tem- 
pered by the good in which he is internally : it is otherwise with 
the wicked ; with such the internal is unfriendly, without pity, 
harsh, breathing hatred and revenge, and feeding itself with 
their delights ; and although it is reconciled, still those evils lie 
concealed as fires in wood underneath the embers ; and these 
fires burst forth after death, if not in this world. 

366. Since zeal in externals appears alike both in the good 
and the wicked, and since the ultimate sense of the Word con- 
sists of correspondence and appearances, therefore in the Word, 
it is very often said of Jehovah that he is angry and wrathful, 
that he revenges, punishes, casts into hell, with many other things 
which are appearances of zeal in externals ; hence also it is that 
he is called zealous ; whereas there is not the least of anger, wrath, 
and revenge in him ; for he is essential mercy, grace and cle- 
mency, thus essential good, in whom it is impossible such evil 
passions can exist. But on this subject see more particulars in 
the treatise on HEAVEN AND HELL, n; 545 550 ; and in the 
AJPOOALTPSE BEVEALED, n. 494, 498, 525, 714, 806. 

367. VI. THE ZEAL OF OONJUGIAL LOVE is GALLED JEALOUSY. 
Zeal in favor of truly conjugial love is the chief of zeals; because 
that love is the chief of loves, and its delights, in favor of which 
also zeal operates, are the chief delights; for, as was shewn 
above, that love is the head of all loves. The reason of this is, 
because that love induces in a wife the form of love, and in a 
husband the form of wisdom ; and from these forms united into 
one, nothing can proceed but what savors of wisdom and at the 
same time of love. As the zeal of conjugial love is the chief 
of zeals, therefore it is called by a new name, JEALOUSY, which 
is the very type of zeal. 

368. VlL JEALOUSY is LIKE AN ABBENT FIBB AGAINST 

THOSE WHO INFEST LOVE EXEBCISED TOWA&DB A MAKRIED 
PARTNER, AND LIKE A TEJREIBLE FEAR FOE THE LOSS OF THAT 

LOVE. The subject here treated of is Jealousy of those who 
are in spiritual love with a married partner ; in the following 
article we shall treat of the jealousy of those who are in natural 
love ; and afterwards of the jealousy of those who are ia love 
truly conj ugial With those who are in spiritual love the j ealousy 
is Carious, because their love is various ; for one love, whether 
spiritual or natural, is never altogether alike with two persons, 
still less with several. The reason why spiritual jealousy, 01 
jealousy with the spiritual, is like an ardent fire raging against 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 868 370 

those who infest their eonjugial love, is, because with them the 
first principle of love is in the internals of each party, and their 
love from its first principle follows its principiates, even to its 
ultimates, by virtue of which ultimates and at the same time of 
first principles, the intermediates which are of the mind and 
body, are kept in lovely connection. These, being spiritual, 
in their marriage regard union as an end, and in union spiritual 
rest and the pleasantness thereof: now, as they have rejected 
disunion from their minds, therefore their jealousy is like a fire 
fitirred up and darting forth against those who infest them. 
The reason why it is also like a terrible fear is, because their spi* 
ritual love intends that they be one ; if therefore there exists a 
chance, or happens an appearance of separation, a fear ensues 
as terrible as when two united parts are torn asunder. This 
description of jealousy was given me from heaven by those 
who are in spiritual conjugial love ; for there are a natural, a 
spiritual, and a celestial conjugial love ; concerning the natural 
and the celestial conjugial love, and their jealousy, we shall take 
occasion to speak in 'the two following articles. 

369. VITI. THERE is SPIRITUAL JEALOUSY WITH MONCH 
GAMISTS, AND NATURAL WITH POLYGAMiSTS. The reason why 
spiritual jealousy exists with monogamists is, because they alone 
can receive spiritual conjugial love, as has been abundantly 
shewn above. It is said that it exists ; but the meaning is that 
it is capable of existing. That it exists only with a very few in 
the Christian world, where there are monogamical marriages, 
but that still it is capable of existing there, lias also been con- 
firmed above. That with polygarnists conjugial love is natural, 
may be seen in the chapter on Polygamy, n. 345, 347 ; in like 
manner jealousy is natural in the same case, because this fol- 
lows love* What the quality of jealousy is among polygarnists, 
we are taught from the relations of those who have been eye- 
witnesses of its effects among the orientals : these effects are, 
that wives and concubines are guarded as prisoners in work- 
houses, and are withheld from and prohibited all communication 
with men ; that into the women's apartments, or the closets of 
their confinement, no man is allowed to enter unless attended 
by a eunuch ; and that the strictest watch it set to observe 
whether any of the women look with a lascivious eye or counte- 
nance at a man as he passes ; and that if this be observed, the 
woman is sentenced to the whip ; and in case she indulges her 
lasciviousness with any man, whether introduced secretly into 
her apartment, or from home, she is punished with death. 

370. From these considerations it is "plainly seen what is the 
quality of the fire of jealousy into whicn polygamical conjugial 
love enkindles itself, that it is into anger and revenge ; into 
anger with the meek, and into revenge with the fierce. The 
reason of this effect is, becanse their love is natural, and does 

301 



370 372 OOHJUGUL LOVE 

not partake of anything spiritual. This is a consequence of 
what is demonstrated in the chapter on Polygamy, that poly 
gamy is lasciviousness, n. 345 ; and that a polygamist, so long aa 
he remains such, is natural, and cannot become spiritual, n. $47. 
But the fire of jealousy is different with natural monogamists, 
whose love is inflamed not so much against the women as against 
those who do violence, becoming anger against the latter, and 
cold against the former : it is otherwise with polygamists, whose 
fire of jealousy burns also with the rage of revenge : this likewise 
is one of the reasons why, after the death of polygamists, their 
concubines and wives are for the most part set free, and are sent 
to seraglios not guarded, to employ themselves in the various 
elegant arts proper to women. 

371. IX. JEALOUSY WITH THOSE MAKRIED PARTNERS WHO 

TENDEBLY LOVE EACH OTHER, IS A ^JUST GRIEF GROUNDED IN 
80TJND REASON LEST CONJTTGIAL LOVE SHOULD BE DIVIDED, 

AND SHOULD THEEEBY PEEisH. All love is attended with fear 
and grief; fear lest it should perish, and grief in case it perishes : 
ft is the same with conjugial love; but the fear and grief attend- 
ing this love is called zeal or jealousy. The reason why this 
sseal, with married partners who tenderly love each other, ia 
just and grounded in sound reason, is, because it is at the same 
time a fear for the loss of eternal happiness, not only of its 
own but also of its married partner's, and because also it is a 
defence against adultery, la respect to the first consideration, 
that it is a just fear lor the loss of its own eternal happiness 
arid of that of its married partner, it follows from every thing 
which has been heretofore adduced concerning love truly COLJ- 
jigial; and also from this consideration, that married partners 
derive from that love the blessedness of their souls, the satis* 
fiction of their minds, the delight of their bosoms, and the 
pleasure of their bodies ; and since these remain with them to 
eternity, each jDarty has a fear for eternal happiness. That the 
above zeal is a just defence against adulteries, is evident : hence 
it is like a fire raging against violation, and defending itself 
against it. From these considerations it is evident, that who- 
ever loves a married partner tenderly, is also jealous, but is just 
and discreet according to the man's wisdom. 

372. It was said, that in conjugial love there is implanted a 
fear lest it should be divided, and a grief lest it should perish, and 
that its zeal is like a fire raging against violation. Some time 
ago, when meditating on this subject, I asked the zealous angels 
concerning the seat of jealousy? They said, that it is in the 
understanding of the man who receives the love of a married 
partner and returns it ; and that its quality there is according 
to his wisdom : they saidfurthei, that jealousy has in it some what 
in common with honor, which also resides in conjugial love ; for 
he that loves his wife, also honors her. In regard to zeal's 

302 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 372 374 

residing with a man in his understanding, they assigned this 
reason ; because conjugial love defends itself by the understanding, 
as good does by truth; so the wife defends those things which 
are common with the man, by her husband; and that on this 
account zeal is implanted in the men, and by them, and for 
their sake, in the women. To the -question as to the region of 
the mind in which jealousy resides with the men, they replied, 
in their souls, because it is also a defence against adulteries ; and 
because adulteries principally destroy conjugial love, that when 
there is danger of the violation of that love, the man's under* 
standing grows hard, and becomes like a horn, with which he 
strikes me adulterer. 

373. X. JEALOUSY WITH MARRIED PARTNERS WHO DO NOT 

LOVE EACH OTHER, IS GROUNDED US SEVERAL CAUSES; ARIS- 
ING- IN SOME INSTANCES FROM VARIOUS MENTAL WEAKNESSES. 

The causes why married partners who do not mutually love each 
other, are yet jealous, are principally the honor resulting from 
power, the fear of defamation with respect both to the man him- 
self and also to his wife, and the dread lest domestic affairs should 
fall into confusion. It is well known that the men have honor 
resulting from power, that is, that they are desirous of being 
respected in consequence thereof; for so long as they have this 
honor, they are as it were of an elevated mind, and not dejected 
when in the company of men and women : to this honor also is 
attached the name of bravery; wherefore military officers have it 
more than others. That the fear of defamation, with respect 
both to the man himself and also to his wife, is a cause of 
jealousy that agrees with the foregoing: to which may be added, 
that living with a harlot, and debauched practices in a house, are 
accounted infamous. The reason why some are jealous through 
a dread lest their domestic affairs should fall into confusion, is 
because, so far as this is the case, the husband is made light of, 
and mutual services and aids are withdrawn ; but with some in 
process of time this jealousy ceases and is annihilated, and with 
some it is changed into the mere semblance of love. 

374. That jealousy in certain cases arises from various mental 
weaknesses, is not unknown in the world; for there are jealous 
persons, who are continually thinking that their wives are un- 
faithful, and believe them to be harlots, merely because they hear 
or see them talk in a friendly manner with or about men. There 
are several vitiated affections of the mind which induce this weak- 
ness ; the principal of which is a suspicious fancy, which if it 
be long cherished, introduces the mind into societies of similar 
spirits, from whence it cannot without difficulty be rescued ; it 
also confirms itself in the body, by rendering the serum, and 
consequently the blood, viscous, tenacious, thick, slow, and acrid, 
a defect of strength also increases it ; for the consequence of such 
defect is, that the mind cannot be elevated from its suspicious 

303 



374 376 CONJUGIAL LOVE 

fancies ; for the presence of strength elevates, and Its absence 
depresses, the latter causing the mind to sink, give way, and 
become feeble ; in which case it immerses itself more and more 
in the above fancy, till it grows delirious, and thence takes 
delight in quarrelling, and, so far as is allowable, in abuse. 

375. There are also several countries, which more than others 
labor under this weakness of jealousy ; in these the wives are 
imprisoned, are tyrannically shut out from conversation with 
men, are prevented from even looking at them through the win- 
dows, by blinds drawn down, and are terrified by threats of death 
if the cherished suspicion shall appear well grounded ; not to 
mention other hardships which the wives in those countries suffer 
from their jealous husbands. "There are two causes of this 
jealousy ; one is, an imprisonment and suffocation of the thoughts 
in the spiritual things of the church ; the other is, an inward 
desire of revenge. As to the first cause, the imprisonment and 
suffocation of the thoughts in the spiritual things of the church, 
its operation and effect may be concluded from what has been 
proved above, that every one has conjugial love according to the 
state of the church with him, and as the church is from the 
Lord, that that love is solely from the Lord, n. 130, 131 ; when 
therefore, instead of the Lord, living and deceased men are 
approached and invoked, it follows, that the state of the church 
is such that conjugial love cannot act in unity with it; and the 
less so while the mind is terrified into that worship by the threats 
of a dreadful prison ; hence it comes to pass, that the thoughts, 
together with the expressions of them in conversation, are violently 
seized and suffocated ; and when they are suffocated, there is an 
influx of such things as are either contrary to the church, or 
imaginary in favor of it; the consequence of which is, heat in 
favor of harlots and cold towards a married partner ; from which 
two pi'inciples prevailing together in one subject, such an uncon- 
querable fire of jealousy flows forth. As to the second cause, 
the inward desire of revenge, this altogether checks the influx 
of conjugial love, and swallows it up, and changes the delight 
thereof, which is celestial, into the delight of revenge, which is 
infernal ; and the proximate determination of this latter is to the 
wife. There is also an appearance, that the unhealthiness of the 
atmosphere, which in those regions is impregnated with the 
poisonous exhalations of the surrounding country, is an addi- 
tional cause. 

376. XL IN SOME INSTANCES THERE IS NOT ANT JEALOUSY J 

AND THIS ALSO- FROM VARIOUS CAUSES. There are several causes 
of there being no jealousy, and of its ceasing. The absence of 
jealousy is principally with those who make no more account of 
conjugial than of adulterous love, and at the same time are so void 
of honorable feeling as to slight the reputation of a name; they 
tire Bot unlike mamod pimps. There is no jealousy likewise with 



AND ITS CHASTE DELIGHTS. 376 378 

those wlio liave rejected it from a confirmed persuasion that it 
infests the miad, and thas it is useless to watch a wife, and that 
to do so serves only to incite her, and that therefore it is better 
to shut the eyes, and not even to look through the key-hole, lest 
any thing should be discovered. Some have rejected jealousy 
on account of the reproach attached to the name, and under the 
idea that any one wno is a real man, is afraid of nothing : some 
have been driven to reject it lest their domestic affairs should 
suffer, and also lest they should incur public censure in case the 
wife was convicted of the disorderly passion of wich she is 
accused. Moreover jealousy passes off into no jealousy with 
those who grant license to their wives, either from a want of 
ability, or with a view to the procreation of children for the sake 
of inheritance, also in some cases with a view to gain, and so 
forth. There are also disorderly marriages, in whicn, by mutual 
consent, the licence of unlimited amour is allowed to each party, 
and yet they are civil and complaisant to each other when they 
meet. 

377. XII. THERE is A JEALOUSY ALSO IK EEGAKD TO QQN 

CUBINES, BUT NOT SUCH AS IN BEGKAED TO WIVES. Jealousy in 

regard to wives originates in a man's inmost principles ; but 
jealousy in regard to concubines originates in external principles ; 
they therefore differ in kind. The reason why jealousy in regard 
to wives originates in inmost principles is, because conjugiallove 
resides in them" : the reason why it resides there is, because 
marriage from the eternity of its compact established by covenant, 
and also from an equality of right,the right of each party being 
transferred to the other, unites souls, and lays a superior obliga- 
tion on minds : this obligation and that union, once impressed, 
remain inseparable, whatever be the quality of the love after- 
wards, whetner it be warm or cold. Hence it is that an invita- 
tion to love coming from a wife chills the whole man from the 
inmost principles to the outermost ; whereas an invitation to love 
coming from a concubine has not the same effect upon the object 
of her love. To jealousy in regard to a wife is added the earnest 
desire of reputation with a view to honor ; and there is no such 
addition to jealousy in regard to a concubine. Nevertheless 
both kinds of jealousy vary according to the seat of the love 
received by the wife and bv the concubine ; and at the same time 
according to the state of te judgment of the man receiving it. 

378. XIII. JEALOUSY LIKEWISE EXISTS AMOKG BEASTS AND 
BIEDS. That it exists among wild beasts, as lions, tigers, bears,